Her Black Cat - Tales of Miraculous Ladybug and Chat Noir
by Hollipop
Summary: With Hawkmoth defeated, Adrien is at a crossroads, Marinette has realized who her partner is, and there's no need for them to keep the Miraculous Stones. Oh and just to add the cherry onto the cake, Adrien might have to move to London! The fall of Hawkmoth was supposed to fix everything, not break it all apart!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Tiki reappeared from the miraculous as Marinette transformed from her superhero alter ego. Her large blue eyes stared up at her with great sympathy. A frown was present on the usually perky girl's face, and Tiki struggled with what to say to her friend. She opened her small mouth, but closed it, realizing there was nothing she could say that would make the teenager feel any better. It was not supposed to be this way. It was not supposed to have happened this way. While the Kwami had known who her partner in crime fighting was, she had thought it best to keep it to herself. However, she did not take into account the identity of Hawkmoth, because, well, how was she supposed to know? She only found out who Chat was because she could sense Plagg's presences. If she ever did tell Marinette, she knew it would only complicate matters, as it did. Now, the girl looked beside herself.

The final battle had been rough and while Tiki's stomach grumbled at her to find some form of nourishment, her main priority was Marinette. She looked battered and scrapped up, but nothing they hadn't dealt with within the past year. Her dark hair was a ratted mess, and her eyes looked slightly sunken in. But more than that, her spirit looked broken.

Marinette threw her bag, which normally carried Tiki, down on the ground a fit of irritation. She was frustrated, sore, and extremely tired, but her mind had refused to let her rest, until she figured out a solution to her current problem. Dealing the Mr. Agreste, formally known as Hawkmoth. Her hero, and person she dreamt of working for and eventually following in his footsteps in the fashion industry, was _the_ villain that Chat Noir and her had been fighting against for the past year. To find out that Adrien's father had been the one terrorizing her fair city was just icing on the cake. Correction, finding out that the boy she had been crushing on for the past year was her loyal companion and the guy that flirted with her non-stop, (as both Marinette and Ladybug) _that_ was the icing on the cake.

Of course as soon as Marinette had taken Hawkmoth's miraculous and he transformed back, she let out a gasp of surprise. Then, Chat had called him Dad, which only added to the surprise. Marinette did not know what to do at this point. She did not know how to even speak to Chat/Adrien. Who was he really? The suave, supermodel, with a nice heart? Or the alley cat, flirt with an adorable charm?

Marinette sigh as she sat down at her computer chair, her weight causing it to spin and landing her right in front of the collage of the supermodel teen. She had the strangest sensation to rip down every photo and throw them away, but thought better as she knew she would regret it later. Just because her head was a little messed up at the moment, did not mean she was actually mad at Adrien. It was not his fault that they could not reveal their identities to one another. She stared at the teen's green orbs, contemplating the question once again. Who is Adrien Agreste? Maybe he was a bit of both?

Tiki flew over to her wielder, "Marinette?" she placed a small red paw on the girl's hand. "What are you thinking?" The girl in question let out a humorless chuckle.

"I'm thinking I've been fighting, side by side, with the guy of my dreams for a little over a year. I've been saying that I really know him, and claiming to be in love with him, when obviously, I have no idea of who he really is." She threw her head back, nearly screaming the last bit of her rant. When she sighed in frustration, she looked down at her friend. Tiki's large blue eyes were filled with worry and sympathy; it brought a few tears to Marinette's own blue eyes. "What do I do?" she pleaded with the Kwami. "I don't know how I'm going to react to him anymore."

"Just be yourself."

"You mean the stuttering, air-head I become whenever Adrien tries to have a normal conversation with me?" She let her head fall to her desk with a loud thunk. Tiki let out a small giggle, in spite of herself.

"No. The real, normal you, is in there somewhere. We just have to bring her out." Tiki tried to give her a reassuring smile, but the teenager continued to frown. "Oh, c'mon, it won't be that bad."

"Tiki, you have seen how I've acted around Adrien." Her eyes bulged a little the on sought of memories; her goofy smiles, slips of the tongue, clumsy movements around the teenage boy. "I don't think my brain will be able to differentiate the two sides."

"I don't think you have time to either." Tiki said staring out the window. "He's on his way."

"Crap! Tiki! Hide!" The Kwami hid herself in a jar that Marinette kept on her desk, just as the window to Marinette's room opened.

"Hello Princess." Chat Noir said, crawling in through the window. "I just thought I'd drop by for a bit." He said staring down at her. When he took in her appearance his eyes widened with shock. "What happened to you?" Marinette blinked in confusion for a minute before looking at her reflection in her dark computer screen. She supposed she looked a little banged up. Crap. How to explain this one?

"Hard day at the bakery?" she gave lamely.

"Wow. What do they have you doing? Fighting a giant blender?" he chuckled. She gave a nervous laugh.

"Uh, well, if you don't mind I'm just going to fix myself up. Be back in a jiffy." She shut the door to her bathroom, before he could say anything more. "Oh man, what am I going to do?" She took in her appearance in the mirror and her eyes widen. No wonder Chat thought she lost to a blender. She cleaned up her face and arms, and fixed her hair, opting to leave it down, since it was almost time for bed.

She walked back into her room, noticing Chat studying the photos displayed above her computer, all of Adrien. "Got a thing for models?" he questioned, a sly smile on his lips. Marinette felt her face catch fire. Now Adrien knew she had photos of him on her wall. She knew, that he knew, that she stared at him every day. Things could not get any worse. "I didn't mean to embarrass you." He said smoothly. Marinette didn't know how to respond, so she just looked to the ground, blushing.

Chat studied the girl in front of him. Normally, she was talkative with this side of him. Normally, she would have some sort of retort for him, now she just seemed… different. "Marinette?" her large blue eyes flew up from the floor, catching his own. He felt his breathe catch for a minute. "Are you okay?" She nodded, eyes never leaving his. "You don't seem like yourself." She closed her eyes, and let out a deep sigh.

"Sorry, it's just been a bit of a rough day, I guess." He grew a little concerned. She was normally so cheerful, but now she seemed, almost deflated somehow.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I don't know if I would be able to with you." She gave a small smile, but he didn't know what to make of her comment.

"What do you mean?"

"Have you ever felt like you thought you knew someone, and then they turned out to be someone completely different?" _Stupid question, Marinette, of course he does. He just discovered that his father was Hawkmoth only a few hours ago._ "Uh, never mind. It's not im-"

"Yeah, I do." She stared up at his green cat-like eyes. "I know exactly how that feels."

Chat clenched his fists. He knew his father was a lot of things. A bad parent? Sure. A broken hearted man? Absolutely. Cold, and calculating? Yes. A villain? No. That thought never once accrued to him. To think that Gabriel Agreste, lead fashion designer, billionaire, and parent, was the arch villain to Ladybug and Chat Noir. That he purposely put their lives in danger and all for what? To bring back the women he had loss? To make her love him again? Adrien wanted his mother back too, but that didn't excuse his father's behavior. So, if anyone knew what Marinette was talking about, it was him.

Marinette did not know what to say to Adrien/Chat. She was having a hard time as it was trying to separate the knowledge that she knew who Chat Noir was. Who was she kidding? She could hardly stand the fact that Adrien, was once again in her room, had saw the pictures of himself on her wall, and was talking with her so casually. She was trying desperately to hold in the knowledge and scream out the fact that she knew Adrien was Chat Noir. But looking at how much he was struggling right now, it was slowly eating her. Adrien must be in so much pain. She cleared her mind, and bit her lip before addressing him. "Chat?" he seemed to snap out of whatever he was thinking about. He stared up at her, blinking.

"Sorry." He said with a small smile. "It's been a long day for me too." She smiled back, unsure what to say. "I mean, I'm sure you've heard the news by now."

"News?" What news?

"Ladybug and I caught Hawkmoth." He stated. He was trying to sound proud, but it came out sounding rather sad.

"Oh." Marinette tried to act surprised. "That's wonderful!"

"Yeah." He let out a shy laugh. "It's been a bit of a hectic day."

"I'm sure you're tired. You should probably head home and get some rest."

"Actually, home is the last place I want to be right now."

 _Stupid Marinette! Of course he doesn't want to be at home right now! It's probably crawling with reporters._

"That's kind of why I came here. Of course, I wanted to check up on my Princess, but I really just wanted someone to talk to as well."

"What about Ladybug?" She said without thinking.

"Ladybug was close to transforming back, so she had to head home. Man, you should have seen the way she fought today." His voice cared an air of awe. "She's a serious force. I mean, the entire team is, but, Ladybug. She's special." Marinette couldn't help but giggle as she sat down in her floor by her bed. Chat followed suite, sitting next to her.

"Sounds like someone has a bit of a crush." Chat's smile vanished and a slight blush stained his cheeks.

"I think I'm in love with her." He said with a serious tone. Marinette's face caught fire again. Adrien truly was in love with Ladybug. Meaning, all those times that Chat had flirted with Ladybug… Flashes of memories of Chat flirting with her as Ladybug came rushing back. The kiss she gave him as Chat, the most prominent memory, during their fight with Dark Cupid.

"Marinette, are you okay? Your face is really red." She shook away the memories, trying to focus on Chat.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just wasn't expecting that. Everyone knows you're a flirt, so I figured when you were with Ladybug, it was no different than how you are with me." She rambled out. Chat tilted his head to the side, in a cat-like manner.

"What do you mean, 'Everyone knows I'm a flirt'? I only flirt with one girl, and that's my lady."

"Don't kid yourself." She said point an accused finger at the superhero. "You flirt with me too."

"I do?" he seemed to take a moment to think about it. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I do." She gave him a smug smile. "I guess, you just remind me so much of my lady, it just comes naturally." Marinette was taken aback.

"Please," she tried to blow off his comparison, feeling a little more than nervous. "I'm nothing like Ladybug." Which she always thought was true. While she was Ladybug, identifying as the superhero had always been difficult for Marinette. She did not see herself as the strong, brave type. That's who she was when she wore the mask. Under the mask, she was just plain Marinette. Tiki may transform her into the superhero, but Marinette was starting to speculate that particular characteristics of the Kwami fused with her. For example, Ladybug was normally very graceful, unlike Marinette, who seemed like a klutz half of the time. Ladybug was always so confident and optimistic, while Marinette seemed to always lean towards the pessimistic side and was not very confident.

"You're more like Ladybug then you give yourself credit for." Chat's voice pulled her out of her thoughts. He smiled at her, genuinely, causing her heart to speed up. "You're the class president right?" she nodded. "When you were running your campaign, your class was attacked by the akumatized knight. I thought it was admiral of you to take charge the way you did. It reminded me a lot of my lady. Seemed like something she would do." He smiled again and Marinette couldn't help the blush that stained her cheeks even if she did try. If only he knew.

Maybe he shouldn't.

It was at that moment that she felt like a bag of rocks fell on top of her stomach. If Adrien were to ever find out that she was Ladybug, he would be disappointed. It had always been a fear of hers, but here he was practically confirming it, in her mind. Both sides of him, were only in love with one side of her. The thought made her feel lousier than she had before.

She turned away from the superhero. "I was only doing what anyone would have done." She mumbled.

"That's another thing!" he said quickly. "You're also modest, and humble." The feeling in her stomach wouldn't leave as he spoke.

"I don't think you know what you're talking about, Chat."

"I think you don't see yourself that way, because your too busy noticing your flaws, rather than your positive traits." He smirked, but noticed Marinette not smiling. In fact, she looked sad again. "Marinette?" She let out a shaky breath. "Marinette?" he placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to keep the worried tone out of his voice.

"I'm – I'm nothing like Ladybug. And – and." She let out a sob hugging her knees. Chat, growing slightly uncomfortable at the sight of a girl crying, tried to be reassuring, by patting her shoulder. "He'll – he'll never see me." She finally let out. Realizing what she had just said, she turned wide, tearful eyes to Chat. He turned to look at the pictures of his alter-ego on her wall. Well, now, didn't he feel like the lowest human being on the plant? Marinette had obviously had some feelings for him, and here he was chasing a girl he didn't even know. But it wasn't like he could turn his feelings off for Ladybug. He sighed, and looked at the girl next to him. Her blue eyes, filled with tears, but her expression wasn't one of sorrow, more of horror. Like she was completely terrified.

"I won't say anything." He told her with a reassuring smile. But the panicky look on her face didn't fade. "Marinette. Honestly, I don't know what to say." She blink at him, confused and frightened that he had somehow found out that she knew he was Adrien. But as he continued, her worry subsided a bit. "I mean, I'm not the best when it comes to advice about love. I mean, here I am chasing after a girl, and I don't even know her real name." he stared down at his boot covered feet. "I do know one thing." He turned to stare at the photos of himself again. "He would be lucky to know a girl like you thought about him like that." Marinette's breath hitched, and she couldn't help but cover her mouth with her hands.

She couldn't believe it. Adrien, just told her that being with him was a possibility. She could not believe it. At least, that's how her mind interpreted his statement. _Wait, what if that was not what he meant at all?_ Her mind asked. She was always one to over think things, but this might actually call for it. Adrien, was obviously still in love with Ladybug, and there was no way she was going to tell him that she was Ladybug. He would only see her as Ladybug and not Marinette. Kind of like how she was having a hard time seeing Chat Noir right now. _Stupid! Hypocrite!_ Here she was panicking about how Adrien would only see Ladybug, and here he was as Chat and she could only see Adrien. While she didn't mind his alter-ego, he acted more like a playboy, rather than the suave and charming guy she knew from school. God! How she wanted to ask him which was his real personality. Which was he? The nice guy or the playboy? The guy that goofs off or the guy that protects everyone? Well, that one was a no brainer. Both Adrien and Chat protected everyone. _I guess that's a shared personality trait._

Marinette still wasn't saying anything to him. So he tried to change tactics. "Tell me what you like about him?a" he tried to ask in a casual way. Marinette blinked a few times, rubbing away the stray tears that had fallen. She sniffed, before standing up to retrieve a tissue. She stared at the pictures of Adrien on her wall. Trying to ignore the fact that the boy was sitting right in her room, she starting speaking, words she had not said aloud to anyone, but herself, and Tiki.

"He's kind. He's sweet. At first, I thought he was as mean as another one of my classmates." She gave Chat an apologetic smile before looking down at her feet. "But it turns out, I was wrong. He was kind to me, when he didn't need to be. Since then, I couldn't get him off my mind. I started noticing things. Quirks and mannerisms about him. He's genuinely a nice guy. He doesn't do things to try to gain favors, or to try to get some reward out of it. He seems like he wants to help those in need." She looked back up to find Chat a mere foot away from her.

"Wow." He cleared his throat. "You – you noticed all that, huh?" he rubbed the back of his head, sheepishly. Marinette couldn't help but connect the boy and the superhero together. She smiled.

"Yeah."

When she smiled, Chat couldn't help but blush. It was so pure, so honest. No one had spoken about him like the way Marinette had before. He was always just trying to do the right thing, but Marinette, saw it as him being a hero in an ironic way. He chuckled. Leave it to Marinette to see the best in him. She seemed to do that a lot when it came to people. Except for Chloe, but he figured there was some history there.

Feeling the mood getting heavy, he wanted to loosen things up. He cleared his throat again and smirked. "So, tell me, my Princess, if you see that in a guy like him. What do you see in me?"

Marinette was taken aback for a moment. Switching from Adrien to Chat was hard enough on her brain right now. Now he wanted a comparison? What a silly kitty he was. Marinette decided to humor him.

"That's easy." she spoke, taking a seat on her bed. "You are a lot like an alley cat."

"An alley cat?" he asked, slightly offended.

"Yes, an alley cat." She said with a nod. "You do your own thing. You are your own person. Slightly rebellious, but know when to follow orders. You're a bit of a flirt, but as you said earlier, you only flirt with one girl." He blushed again at being called a flirt. It was no wonder that Ladybug rebuffed his affections. "But you're genuine too. And Loyal. When Ladybug's in a pinch, she knows she can count on you. She knows you're dependable. And," she stared up at him, her blue eyes penetrating into his soul, "you're also a great listener." He blinked a few times, unsure what to say.

"You caught all that too, huh?" he finally said, moving to the bed to sit next to her. She nodded, but didn't look at him. "Funny, if I didn't know any better, I would have thought you were in love with me instead of him." He blurted out without thinking. "I mean – " his voice was cut off as he looked to see Marinette's reaction, waiting for a slap or for something to be thrown at his head, instead, her face was bright red, and she was trembling slightly. "I, uh, didn't mean to imply…" his voice trailed off.

 _He's wrong. He has to be wrong. I mean sure Chat is a great friend, and a great listener. I helped him once. That was it. But it wasn't like we didn't see each other all the time._ Her voice was screaming in her own head. In love with Chat Noir?! She thought it could be possible now, because she knew who he was, but before… no. There was no way. Chat was so different from Adrien. Sure he was adorable when he tried to impress her. And he was brave, and strong. _Those cat puns though._ She thought to herself. "If I was to fall in love with you," she started, face still red, "the first thing to go would be those cat puns." Chat blinked at her in shock. The cat puns? Really?

"What?" he started slyly. "You don't think my puns are 'claw-some'?" Marinette let out a groan. "Aren't they just 'purr-fect'?"

"Please, stop." She said in a voice that was almost pained.

"I can't stop once I 'cat' going."

"Oh my god!" She threw a pillow at his face. He laughed.

"If you keep this up, you're going to hurt my 'feline'."

"Oh my god, Chat!" Marinette groaned again, trying to hide the laugher in her voice, but failing. "You are the worst."

"Aw, don't be that way. You should 'fur'give and 'fur'get."

"Chat!" He smiled widely, as she yelled out his name. "You're horrible." She threw another pillow at his head, but he caught it with ease. Throwing it back at her, but she dodged in time. It landed with soft plush on the floor. "You tried to hit me." She said in mock horror.

"You started it."

"Only because you had to start up with your puns." He let out a chuckle, to which Marinette tried to throw another pillow at him, but he caught her wrist instead.

"My Princess, has some claws." She rolled her eyes, but couldn't help her smile. It was then that his ring started to beep. "Of all the luck. Sorry Princess, our time is up." Marinette looked a little upset but walked with him up the stairs of her balcony.

"Uh," she stared but hesitated. He turned his head again, in that cat like manner.

"What's up?"

"Well, the thing is… can you… check on him?" Marinette asked, not sure how to word it correctly.

"On Adrien, you mean? Don't worry, I'm sure he's safe at home." He said without worry.

"That's what I'm afraid of." Marinette mumbled under her breath. "Well, I mean, if you happen to go by his house, can you just, I don't know, let him know that… that, that he's welcomed here. If he needs someone, I guess." Marinette bit her lip worried she had said too much. Chat eyed her for a minute.

"Don't worry Marinette, you're prince charming is probably safe locked away in his tower." He gave her a small wave and used his staff to leap off of her balcony. His words gave Marinette pause. That is what she was truly afraid of, even if he did just jump off of her balcony.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I'm so happy to see a bunch of you enjoying the story so far. I hope you'll continue to read my work and enjoy it with me. I love these two. I think they are the most adorable couple right now. However, I am aware of other pairings within the fandom and have touched on a few of those as well. This is going to be a long story, I've estimated it at 25 chapters, but there could be more. Also as a warning there is NO lemon in this fic. I may touch on that in another, but given the characters' ages, I found that it may be inappropriate. There will, however, be lots and lots, and LOTS of fluff, so feel free to enjoy that. Please do not repost my work. This is very personal to me, and I really like the ideas that I have for this story. I will be posting weekly, usually on Friday's if not Saturdays. I want to give everyone a little something to look forward to for the weekend. Please feel free to leave me reviews. I know it sounds cliche, but the reviews will help so much at figuring out how I'm doing. Well, I guess that was all I wanted to say, on with the fic!

Chapter 2

As Adrien (as his alter-ego Chat Noir) leaped from building to building, Marinette's worried face continued to pop into his head. Why was she so considered? What did he do to cause her so much worry? The answer appeared itself as he saw the front gates to his house. Several TV station vans, police cars, and other vehicles were parked outside the gates. Reporters speaking into the cameras. _Of course_ , he thought as he leaped onto his own roof. Unlike Ladybug and the others, he did not immediately go home. He was too upset with the day's events to think about what it would be like. He was starting to regret it. He should have been here for Nathalie and the others. They were probably out of their minds with panic right now, trying to put pieces back together again. And where was Adrien going to go? The only family he had left was an Aunt and Uncle in England.

He leaped into his open window and a small black cat reemerged from the ring, floating in the air. "I want two BIG slices of camembert for the extra time I had to spend." He flew over to Adrien's bed and made myself comfortable on a pillow. "I thought you two would never stop talking." He complained. Adrien rolled his eyes, but was used to the way Plagg thought with his stomach before anything else. He quickly got the smelly cheese from a small fridge he had put in the room, just for reasons like this.

"Here." He said giving the Kwami the plate with the slices on it. "I still don't know how you can eat that stuff." He complained.

"It's so good!" he said taking one whole slice into his mouth and chewing obnoxiously. "So," he said as he swallowed, "What are you gonna do now?"

"What do you mean?" Adrien asked as he moved the mouse attached to this computer. The three screens lite up with the background of his mother's face. He smiled looking at her photo. He quickly opened the web browser and tuned into the Ladyblog. For once, there wasn't and update on the site. He didn't have to worry though, as a local news station had the full story. Or so they claimed.

"I'm standing in front of the Agreste Manor now, where hours ago, Gabriel Agreste, leading fashion designer, was arrested after being discovered to be the terrorist behind the attacks plaguing our city." A news women reported. Behind her was Adrien's house, but it didn't feel like he was his anymore. More like a fortress where he was held captive. What else was his father hiding from him? What else did he know about the Miraculouses? "Ladybug and Chat Noir, along with their team, had finally put an end to the evil doer, and unmasked this villainous foe. We have retrieved footage from the fight."

The screen cut to a shot near the end of the battle. Hawkmoth on the ground, surrounded by Chat Noir, Carapace, Queen Bee, Rena Rouge, and Ladybug. Hawkmoth stares daggers into each person on the superhero team. Even from the bad angle on the street, and the horrible quality of the video, it was clear that each member was bruised and tired.

'No more evil doing for you.' Ladybug said as she reached for his miraculous. He continued to shout threats, and pleas. But they were falling on deaf ears. The camera moves slightly, only showing Hawkmoth, as Ladybug removes his miraculous. He transformed revealing, a wide-eyed, Gabriel Agreste. A collective gasp was heard, and the screen blacked out.

The scene cut back to the reporter standing in front of his house. "Mr. Agreste has been arrested and awaiting -"

Adrien couldn't stomach anymore, so he switched off his monitors. The flashing lights from outside still glared around his bedroom. He wanted to scream, but thought better of it. Plagg floated next to him, his eyes filled with sympathy. Adrien rubbed a finger on the tiny Kwami's head. His cat ears fell back on his head, and he let out a slight purr. Adrien, let out a sigh, and thought it was time to seek answers. He left his room quickly in search of Nathalie. She was just outside his door about to knock on it.

"Oh, Adrien," she let out a heavy sigh. "Good, you are up. Listen, I don't know if you know this or not, but things are going to be pretty hectic for the next few days." _Days?_ He thought, _Try weeks, Nathalie_. "I'm sure you've seen the news by now, and if you haven't, well, I suggest that you do. I'm not really sure how I would be able to explain it to you."

"I've already seen the news." He said with a slight coldness he didn't know he was capable of. He sounded almost like his father. "Just," he sighed, "just tell me you didn't know." Nathalie looked a bit taken aback. She opened her mouth, but closed it and let out deep breath.

"No, I didn't know. If I did," she lowered her tall figure down a bit. While, he had grown over the summer, Nathalie was always tall, as tall as his father. "I would have stopped him. I know it seems like he doesn't show it, but he does love you, Adrien."

"Doesn't show it is right. Look what he did for my mom. Would he have done the same for me?" the question had been haunting him since he found out.

"Adrien." Nathalie's tone was that of disappointment, not anger like he had been expecting. "C'mon, we need to go."

"Go where?" She bit her lip as he studied her face. Nathalie had always looked sure of herself. It was the one thing that his father had always praised about her, but at this moment, she looked nervous and very unsure of herself, which left Adrien feeling like his stomach was doing flips.

"While, your father is being held for questioning," She started, "He thought it best if you moved in with your Aunt and Uncle in England." His eyes widened. He had just been starting to go to school in Paris. He liked Paris, no, he loved Paris. He wasn't about to leave. Not while he was still Chat Noir. Not while, his father was going to be going through questioning and a trial.

"No." he stated firmly.

"Adrien." Nathalie sounded a bit exasperated.

"No!" he stated louder. "I'm not leaving when I finally started school, and I've made friends. Besides, if I go to England, it's not like the press won't follow me. No. If I'm going to be dealing with this, I'd rather be dealing with this where I'm comfortable. Where I have friends I can depend on." It was at that moment that Marinette's concerned voice filled his head. He did have friends he could depend on. "I've already been getting offers from people to allow me to stay their places." He told his father's assistant.

"You have?" she eyed him through narrow eyes.

"Sure. Marinette has offered, and I'm sure –," just as he was about to speak, his phone lit up with several texts. Nino, Chloe, Ayla, and a few other classmates, sending support and offering places to stay. He held up the phone for Nathalie to see. She took it, reading over some of the notifications, before handing it back to him. "See, they all want me to stay. Nino and Chloe have both offered me a place to crash as well." Nathalie let out a deep sigh.

"Your father won't like this, but I can't argue when it comes to your comfort." She turned looking like she was about to leave his bedroom. "And if you truly have a place to stay, I'm sure your father won't object either. If I were you, I would stay away from Marinette or Chloe." Adrien gave her a confused looked. "You don't need any more publicity. I would stay clear of a scandal, and staying at a girl's house," she shook her head. "Scandalous."

"Technically, Chloe's house is a hotel." Adrien said with a slight blush. Thinking about the word scandalous and Marinette together, caused a heat to his face.

"All the more reason you should stay clear. I will call Nino's parents and set up the arrangements for them to take you in. Of course, we will make sure you have money to take care of your amenities." She was talking more to herself now, than him as she walked away and out of his bedroom. He quickly dialed Nino's cell phone.

"Yo, dude! Are you okay?" Nino's concerned voice answering the phone was almost more than he could bare, but Adrien pushed back the hurt feelings and collected himself again.

"I'll be fine. Look, Nathalie is calling your parents right now. You are cool with me crashing at your place for a while, right?"  
"Dude, I didn't even get a chance to ask before my mom said something. Her and my dad both saw the news and immediately offered. I texted you as soon as I could. When are you getting over here?"

"As soon as I can." He quickly unzipped his gym bag and started stuffing clothes into it. Nino's voice sounded far away for a moment before he came back clear on the phone.

"Sorry, sounds like my mom just got off the phone with Nathalie." His voice pulled away from the phone again, as Adrien heard his name being called by another female voice. "Alright, sounds like I have to get the spare room set up. I'll see you when you get here. We can talk more than."

"Sounds good, Nino." There was a slight pause. "And thanks, man."

"I've got your back, dude." Nino, said as he hung up the phone. Adrien quickly stuffed, nearly his entire closet, into his duffle bag. Plagg helping with one or two articles of clothing. He smiled at his Kwami. Glad to have friends that are willing to support him.

Adrien arrived at Nino's house faster than he expected to. Nathalie had snuck him around the back of the mansion where a car was waiting, avoiding the reporters. Nino greeted him the same as always, and Adrien smiled, in spite of the situation he was in. Nino's mother quickly embraced him, giving him a shock at first, but he returned the embrace all the same.

"Don't you worry about a thing." She told him when she let go of him. "You're welcome to stay as long as you like." He smiled at the women.

"Thank you." She beamed at him. Nino nudged his shoulder and pointed up the stairs. Adrien went with him and Nino escorted him up to the room he would be staying in. It smelled like clean linen and was warm and comfortable. He put his bag on the bed and smile at his friend. "Thanks."

"It's no problem, dude." Nino was smiling, but his eyes were filled with sympathy. "How you holdin' up?"

Adrien sunk onto the bed. "I don't really know. I mean. It's kind of a shock to the system really." He let his head fall.

"Don't sweat it too much, dude. You'll see. This will all blow over in a few days."

There was that word again, "days". Didn't anybody understand that this wasn't just going to be over in a few days? This could follow him around for his entire life. Well, maybe not his entire life, but it would be around for a while. His father was a nefarious villain after all. At least, as far as Paris was concerned. What would they charge him with anyway? It's not like he vandalized the city, and the city was left with the clean-up. Ladybug's Lucky Charm would always take care of that. Civil suits would be appropriate, considering the countless number of victims that were traumatized by the events. That's if, they remembered the events.

Adrien gave his friend a small smile, but it felt fake. Nino must have noticed it too, because he gave him a face. "Dude." He shook his head, wrapping an arm around Adrien's shoulders. He knew Nino was trying to comfort him, but nothing seemed to be working. Even seeing Marinette earlier only left him feeling lower than he already did. Marinette was a sweet girl, and was looking at him like he was a hero. _If only she knew_. He thought to himself. But after everything she said, it was obvious that she wouldn't like the Chat Noir side of him. Sure she got along with this alter-ego fine, but she had eyes only for Adrien. And he didn't want to disappoint her.

Nino shifted and moved in front of him again. "It really is going to be okay, dude. We've all got your back." He said with sympathy.

"Thanks, man. I just," he sighed. "I just don't know what to expect and I guess my mind is trying to fill in the blanks."

"Dude. You can't worry about things you can't control."

"I tell him that all the time." Plagg's voice filled the room. Adrien stared daggers at his duffle bag.

"What was that?"

"What was what?" Adrien said with a nervous smile.

"Someone just spoke." Nino looked a little nervous himself.

"Oh, really? I didn't hear anything."

"Yeah. Nothing." Said Plagg again from the duffle bag. Adrien slammed his hand down hard on his duffle bag.

"Okay, am I being Punked?" Adrien laughed, trying to figure out how to keep Plagg from speaking again.

"Dude, it's coming from your bag." Nino pointed at the black duffle bag.

"I must have thrown a toy, or something in there." Adrien tried to brush it off. He opened up the duffle bag, and tried to reach in to make the Kwami be quiet. He felt around for the mischievous feline. "Where are you?" he whispered.

"Dude!" Nino's sudden shout, quickly brought Adrien's head up. Nino was pointing to Adrien's head. He gave his friend a questioning look. "There's something on your head." Adrien reached up and felt Plagg sitting in his hair. He grabbed the Kwami and stuffed him in the bag quickly before Nino could see. Nino stared at his friend, opened mouthed.

"You… you… you have a…"

"A toy!" Adrien cried. "It's just a toy! Kind of like a Furby or a," but he was interrupted.

"Kwami" Nino spoke in a small whisper. Adrien stared at his friend. How did Nino know about Kwami's? At the recognition, Plagg floated up from the duffle bag, giving Adrien an apologetic look.

Nino stood up and faced the floating cat with awe. He then stared at his friend again. "So, that means, that you." Adrien felt the color drain from his face. It was all over. Nino knew about his Kwami. Knew about his secret identity. Was Master Fu going to take him back? Was he no longer going to be Chat Noir? He waited on baited breath for Nino to finish his thoughts. "You're Chat Noir." He said with a large smile. He then broke out into a fit of laugher. Adrien couldn't help but blush, thinking his friend was laughing at him.

"Go on. Laugh all you want. I've saved your butt so many times." Adrien started but Nino held up a hand has he was bent over, holding his stomach.

"Oh, my God, dude." He breathed deeply. "That's, it's, too much." Plagg looked over at Adrien, who looked back. Both looked confused as they turned back to Adrien's laughing friend. He took another deep breath, before straightening out. "Okay. I'm good." He beamed at his friend. "I'll be right back." Nino left before Adrien could stop him. He knew he could trust Nino, but still his instincts screamed at him to stop his friend, tie him down and gag him until he could figure out what to do. But Nino came back quickly, cupping something between his hands. He smiled up at his friend's confused look. "Meet Wayzz." A small green, turtle like Kwami with large green and yellow eyes stared up at Adrien.

"Wayzz!" Plagg cried as he circled his friend. Wayzz smiled and floated around with the black cat.

"Plagg! It is so good to see you two again." He smiled widely.

"Wait." Adrien said, looking at the Kwami, then looking at Nino. "You're…"

"Yup." He beamed at his friend, showing off his Miraculous bracelet. Adrien stared down at his own Miraculous, smiling.

"You mean to tell me, that we've been working together this entire time?" He cried out.

"Yup!" Nino laugh. "Isn't it hilarious? All this time, I've been fighting alongside my best dude, and I didn't even know it!"

Adrien let out a chuckle. "Well, in all fairness, you don't really act like yourself when you are your alter-ego."

"Look who's talking. Never pictured you to be the alley-cat flirt." Nino gave a sly grin, causing Adrien's eyes to widen with mortification. Did everyone think he was a flirt?

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" he questioned to the air.

"Because it's true." Nino answered, unhelpfully. "If you hit on Ladybug any harder, you're going to the hospital for serious injuries." Nino teased. Adrien blushed.

"I – I," he didn't know what to say to his best friend. His attitude towards Ladybug had never changed because he knew that no one knew who he was. Why change his behavior. Knowing now, that Nino was watching him interact with Ladybug, almost made him feel guilty for his actions. "I just have a great dynamic with her?" he said at last. Nino gave him a sly grin.

"Sure, dude. Whatever you say."

Adrien felt lighter after speaking with Nino about everything. About him finding out who his dad really was. About being Chat Noir. About Ladybug. It felt great to have someone else who understood what he was going through. Who could at least meet him on even ground. "I can't believe you've been fighting your dad this entire time." Adrien gave him a bit of a guilty look. "Don't do that." Nino scowled at him. "This is not your fault, dude. You were just caught up in this just like the rest of us." Wayzz lifts his head from where he and Plagg were snacking. Nino looked at him slightly apologetic. "Not that I'm complaining about turning into a superhero, of course." Adrien gave him a weak smile.

"Of course."

"Anyway. It's not like you had any control over who Hawkmoth was going to be. So don't feel guilty about it, dude." He patted his friend's back. "Besides, I was more referring to the fact that you had to physically fight your dad. I mean, jeez. Seems like a loose/loose no matter what." He shook his head looking slightly shocked. "I mean, I guess it's a good thing he didn't realize who you were." Nino said with a small smile.

"I'm not so sure he didn't." Adrien thought back when he first saw Hawkmoth's form melt into his father's. Of course everyone gasped, but he subconsciously called out to his father. Quietly, shocked by what his eyes were seeing. He knew the instant his father heard the word fall from his lips. Their eyes locked. His eyes, filled with hatred, quickly melted into a look of confusion, then understanding, then shock. So many emotions playing across his face in the span of a few seconds. He didn't say anything before he was escorted away.

As he relayed this to Nino, his face grew more worried over his friend. Adrien's father may not be the best parent, but it was obvious that he loved his son. He just had a strange way of showing it. Keeping him hidden within a gilded cage. Only allowing him time for his studies and after school actives that would look impressive on a resume.

"That may complicate matters." Adrien gave off a humorless chuckle.

"You're telling me." During their time talking, they managed to make it onto the guest bed. Adrien threw himself back onto the duvet. It smelt like clean linen, but something distinctly like Nino's home. He couldn't place his finger on it, but it was almost comforting. Unlike his house, where all he smelt was cleaner all day. To the point where it almost gave him a headache.

The thought of home, reminded him of the secrets that his father may have hidden. "I do know one thing we have to do." He spoke suddenly. Nino turned a curious gaze to his friend. "We need to find a way back to my house." He raised an eyebrow in question. Adrien sat up, already thinking of a plan. "What else could my father be hiding?"

"What do you mean?"

"I honestly don't know, but I don't want any more surprises. My father had a secret vault, behind my mother's portrait in his office. There could be more items in there that I don't know about." He thought about what he found the first time he went into the vault. "He's got to."

"Well," Nino stretched his arms over his head, "for now, I think its best if you get some rest, dude." Adrien nodded, but wasn't really listening. He was too busy thinking about a way to bypass the security of his house in order to get in. "Yo! Earth to Adrien!" He blinked as his friend howled into his ear. "Dude, you can't think clearly without some rest. We'll go tomorrow. Maybe get Ladybug and the rest of the gang involved." He thought about what Nino was saying. Extra help would be a plus.

"Alright. I'll get some sleep." He turned to his luggage pulling out some pajama bottoms.

"Glad you see it my way." Nino teased. "Get some sleep, dude. We'll go after school tomorrow." Nino paused on his way out. "That is if you wanna go to school tomorrow, considering…" He trailed off but Adrien understood what he was saying.

"I think I'd go crazy trading one cage for another." Nino consider this and smiled, rolling his eyes.

"Alright then. See you tomorrow, dude." He waved as he closed the door.

Adrien quickly undressed and pulled on his pajama pants, crawling into the freshly made bed. The bed was plushy, but not in an uncomfortable fashion. He felt his body relax against the mattress and plush pillows. Before long, sleep had dragged him under. His last thought, _it almost feels like Marinette's bed._

A/N I know this chapter is a little shorter than my previous one. I'm still working on the timing, and I thought this would be a great place to leave our heroes for now. We get a good idea of what is going through Adrien's head, but there's more to come. New villians, how they defeated Hawkmoth, all will be told. Just be patient with me my dearies. Thanks again for reading and I hope to see you all next week! :D


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: You guys are so amazing! :D I CANNOT believe how much people are liking this story so far. I hope you guys continue to support me and this lovely couple before us.

Pinksakura271: Thank you so so so so so so SO much for reviewing it! I'm so happy that you are enjoying the story so far! I am truly sorry that you don't like Marinette, cause she's actually my favorite character. Not just because she the main character, but I see a lot of me in Marinette, especially when I was a teen. I do agree with you that Chat is all around amazing and exploring what he would and wouldn't do in this story has been so much fun! I hope you continue to read through everything, even if it is a MariXAdrien story. Thanks again for your support!

Again you are all so amazing for being with me through this! But that's enough from me. Now, on to the story!

I do not own anything. :(

Chapter 3

Marinette rushed through her morning routine. She didn't want to be late for school again, but she had a hard time falling asleep last night, without knowing if Adrien was okay after leaving her place or not. She wanted to text him. But she continued to chicken out. Ayla had text her that morning that Adrien was staying with Nino, so she was less concerned, but she still didn't know how to face him as Adrien today, and not as Chat Noir.

She ran down stairs, through her parents' bakery. "Marinette!" her father and mother called at the same time. She quickly stopped, worried she was going to be scolded for running through the house. Her father quickly shoved a box of baked goods into her hands. "Be sure to give at least one to Adrien." He said, giving her a wink. She blushed slightly but nodded.

As Marinette arrived at the steps of her school, she was relieved to see that she wasn't late, yet again. Ayla waved her over, and Marinette opened the box as she greeted her friend. "Morning."

"Baked goods, from your bakery," Ayla said as she grabbed a macaroon, "are always the best." She bit into it happily, enjoying the sweet taste.

"Dad wanted me to make sure that Adrien got one specifically. I hope he's doing okay."

"You saw the news too, huh?" Marinette nodded, her bright blue eyes unable to hide her sympathy. "That poor child. I texted him last night, asking if he needed anything. He just said, he was okay and crashing with Nino." Marinette grew a little more concerned than she had before. Adrien didn't like calling attention to himself. But being a model, and the son of a leading fashion designer that was hard not to do. "Speak of the devil." Ayla said with a smirk. Marinette's eyes widened as Adrien and Nino strode up the stairs to the school. Nino stopped in front of them, saying hi to Ayla.

"Baked goods, Marinette?" he asked, eyeing the box.

"You know it." She said with a smile. Nino, rubbed his hands together, surveying the box with delight. "My parents wanted me to make sure Adrien got one, specifically. I think they are a little worried about you too. Just trying to show support, you know." She babbled. Adrien was shocked for a minute before, reaching into the box himself.

"Oh, well, thanks, but I'm good." He took a bite of the macaroon. Delicious as always. "Nino's letting me crash at his place until this blows over." He smiled at the girl, remembering how worried she was about him, as she spoke to Chat. She gave him a shy smile, trying not to remember him as Chat, but as Adrien.

"Well, the offer is still there. If you need anything, just let me know." She said, nervously. He gave her a genuine smile.

"Thanks." He walked into the school, taking another bite of the confection in his hand. _Man, I gotta get the recipe from Marinette._

As the school day dragged on, Marinette was in such a good mood, she didn't even mind Chloe trying to annoy her. She ignored the spiteful girl, as she thought about the close to normal conversation she had with Adrien. _I didn't stutter! I didn't make a fool of myself! I didn't even say something stupid!_ She beamed to herself, as Ayla watched her.

Ayla loved her best friend, but if she didn't do something about her being so painfully shy in front of her crush, it was going to bite her in the butt. She stared down at the blonde sitting in front of her best friend. She didn't see the appeal to Adrien, sure he was good looking, but Ayla had a different type. As she thought that, her eyes subconsciously turned to the blonde's best friend sitting next to him. Nino and Ayla had been in a relationship for a little over a year, thanks to Ladybug locking them in a cage together at the zoo. Who knew? Super hero and a super match maker. Maybe she could convince the superhero to help set up her best friend and Adrien together. She quietly laughed at the thought. What was she going to do, go up to Ladybug on one of their team get-togethers and ask her there?

It was then her thoughts turned to Carapace. The one team member on the Miraculous team that she got along with the least. They were able to work together, but don't leave them in a room alone. They fought, a lot. He would always say that he knew what he was talking about, that he was the "smart one". Ayla couldn't stand him. Sure, he had led them to where Hawkmoth was. And sure, he could be impressive every now and then, but it didn't mean that Ayla had to like him. She thought back on the day they were all called together. Carapace had a plan.

 _"_ _He's calling us out, Rena, we have to do something." Carapace shook his head at his fox-clad partner._

 _"_ _It. Is. A. Trap." She had spoken slowly this time, hoping he would get the message after the umpteenth time she had repeated herself. Hawkmoth had issued a challenge to meet with the team of super heroes. Them against his akumatized villains. It was too good to be true. And if Ayla's mother had taught her anything, it was that if something was too good to be true, it usually was. "I'm tired of repeating myself."_

 _Ladybug, Queen Bee, and Chat had looked on during the argument. Not offering any input, too afraid to get their heads snapped off, again._

 _"_ _Who cares if it's a trap?! We have the upper-hand."_

 _"_ _How?! Did you magically figure out a way to take down 5 villains, and Hawkmoth all in one swoop? You should really get your head checked, it's almost as hard as your shell now."_

 _"_ _Look who's talking. Besides, we can't just ignore his challenge."_

 _"_ _Yes, we can. We need a better strategy. We can't just show up and fight, we might as well just say, 'Here, Hawkmoth, please, take our miraculous'!"_

 _"_ _Are you questioning the capabilities of the team?"_

 _"_ _You know I'm right!"_

 _"_ _Enough!" Ladybug screamed at the bickering pair. "Fighting about it is getting us nowhere. Rena, I understand you are worried, however, we simply cannot ignore Hawkmoth." Carapace looked smugly over at the girl. "That being said, we can't go charging in blindly. We do need a strategy. Some form of a sneak attack, perhaps? What do you think Chat?"_

 _"_ _Sneaking is good. We can pull the rug right out from under him, and his goons."_

 _"_ _Who has he akumatized this time?" Queen Bee questioned._

 _"_ _No one good if he thinks it will be enough to take our miraculous. We need to be on guard for this round." Ladybug clenched her fist at her side._

 _"_ _Maybe we should strategize more. Take the time to discuss what Hawkmoth can and can't do." Queen Bee said._

 _"_ _We also need to find out what the akumatized villains can do." Chat agreed._

 _"_ _We'll split up and search the city. If they're akumatized, we'll find them sooner or later. Chat, Queen Bee, you're with me." Queen Bee and Chat did a quick fist bump. "Carapace and Rena, you two, need to work together more. Normally, I would split you up, but I believe that has hindered your relationship rather than strengthened it. This is your chance to prove that you two can work together and for the good of the team."_

 _Carapace and Rena looked at one another with worried expressions. "Don't worry." At the sound of Ladybug's voice, they both turned, "I know you can do it." She smiled at them._

 _"_ _Anything for you Ladybug." Rena said with a sigh._

 _"_ _Yeah, anything for the team." Ladybug beamed at them before using her yo-yo to zip off the roof, Queen Bee and Chat Noir not too far behind._

 _"_ _So, where should we start?" Rena had asked._

 _"_ _Well, my name is Carapace." Rena narrowed her eyes, scowling at the turtle-clad hero. "I'm just kidding. Lighten up a bit." Rena took this part of her life very seriously. She needed to. Ladybug had given her this responsibility. It was only fair that the take it with the upmost serious attitude she could muster. Carapace on the other hand, saw it as an opportunity to play around and goof off._

 _"_ _I guess we could start on the east side of town." He said getting ready to jump off the roof. He looked back at Rena. "That's if you can keep up." He smirked at her, she scowled. He leapt off the building, and Rena followed after him, keeping a vigilante watch on the surrounding streets._

 _They reached the north east side of the city and patrolled for hours. No sign of any akumatized villains or any one in need of help. After reaching the south east side, they stopped for a break. Carapace stopped on top cage that was home to a lion at the zoo. Ayla couldn't help the smile that shined on her face. Being here brought those wonderful memories back, about Nino and being trapped in the cage with him. He was sweet and supportive. He kept her calm by simply talking to her. It was the start of their blooming relationship._

 _"_ _Now that's something you don't see every day." Carapace said, bringing her out of her memories. She started scanning the area, but when she turned to Carapace to asking him what he saw, she noticed him staring at her. "You look nice when you smile." He gave her his own small smile and she couldn't help the blush probably seeping through her mask._

 _"_ _I-uh-I was thinking about something."_

 _"_ _Hot date here?" he said leaning down to take a seat. Ayla smiled._

 _"_ _Something like that."_

 _"_ _I get that feeling." Carapace said staring out into the distance. The sun was setting, and the street lights were just starting to turn on. "This place is special to me too." He beamed up at her. The question was on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't bring herself to ask. It wouldn't be fair. They didn't need to know about their secret identities, or the lives that they live. Instead, she sat herself down next to him and stared at the setting sun, wishing she was with Nino instead._

 _"_ _Too bad we didn't find anyone."_

 _"_ _Yeah, but I'm sure they'll show up, sooner or later. Hawkmoth can't keep them underground forever. They run on pure emotion. Negative emotions, but emotions none-the-less."_

 _"_ _That's true. Man! I wish there was a way to track them." An idea formed in her head._

 _"_ _There might be."_

Ayla shook her head of the memory. While the moment was small, it was a tiny connection she had with Carapace. It was also the only time the two had actually gotten along, since then. She didn't want to think about what happened after. Who knew her plan would work out so well. And lead her down the road that her best friend and her boyfriend's best friend, were down. Ayla looked again at Marinette, still beaming at being able to carry a normal conversation with the boy she admired so much. The school day was going to be interesting.

"Adrikins!" A blonde and white blur shot pass the front of the desks, wrapping itself around Adrien. "Are you alright? Why didn't you text me back? You know Daddy wouldn't have minded if you need to stay with us." Chloe whined while holding onto Adrien. He tried to pry her off of him, and after the fourth attempt she finally got the message and let go.

"I'm sorry I didn't text you back, it's been a little hectic. And I'm good. I'm staying with Nino." At the sound of his name, the boy in question gave the girl a little wave.

"Does he have the room? I'm mean, I live in a hotel. There's plenty of room at my place." She boasted.

"Thanks again, but Nathalie thinks it best if I stay over at Nino's until everything cools down." Chloe stared daggers at Nino, who physically flinched.

"Fine. But if he doesn't work out, you know how to reach me." She stuck her nose in the air and turned around to take her seat.

Adrien rolled his eyes but knew she meant well. She just didn't have to be so mean about it.

The school day finally ended. Adrien stretched his arms above his head. Happy to be free from the confines of a chair. He also realized that there might be a little bit of the light to this dark tunnel. Now, he didn't need to participate in the extra circulars that his father had pushed on him. He still enjoyed fencing, but the season was over. He actually could have an afternoon to himself. He realized he could put it to good use.

"So, we gonna meet up?" Nino said as they walked back to his place.

"Yeah. We'll get ready at your place. We'll meet up separately, so people don't become suspicious. Plus, I need to make a stop somewhere."

"Sounds good, dude. Where are we meeting?"

"The house across from mine. I'll send a comm out to the others to let them know too."  
"Sounds like a plan, dude."

When they arrived at Nino's, Adrien was surprised to see no one around. He looked over to his friend, questioningly. "My parents both work. They won't be home until later." Adrien shrugged. He opened his jacket to let out Plagg. The Kwami circled around before stretching himself.

"So, am I going to be able to eat first, or are we just doing this?" Adrien rolled his eyes.

"You wouldn't happen to have any camembert do you?" Nino gave him an old look before responding.

"No, sorry, dude. No way am I keeping that smelly stuff in my house. My parents would flip."

"Sorry, Plagg, I'll stop at the store. We'll pick some up. I've never be grocery shopping anyway." Nino blinked a few times at his friend, staring in shock. "What?"

"You've never been grocery shopping?" Adrien just shrugged his shoulders.

"Plagg! Claws out!" The black cat Kwami was sucked into Adrien's ring, as his costume appeared.

"Alright, my turn." Nino cracked his knuckles. "Wayzz! Shell on!" Wayzz disappeared into the bracelet that Nino wore, transforming it from a grey to a bright green. Nino's costume incased his body in a green suit and googles. A turtle shell, almost looking like back pack, appearing on his back. "Alright! All set."

"Great! Now, I'll meet you over by the house. I have something I need to take care of first."

"You got it." He took off out the window and Adrien/Chat Noir was now alone. He waited all of five minutes before jumping out the window himself and into the opposite direction of his house. Something was pulling him to see Marinette.

A/N: A sudden pull to see his beloved? Or the pull to seek advice from a friend? / I know the answer, but I'm not gonna tell ya'll! You'll just have to find out next week. Tee-he-he. I hope you guys liked the little part with Nino and Wayzz in the last chapter. I know that in the show *SPOILER ALERT* Marinette picked Ayla to be Rena, but I felt that maybe Adrien was going to pick Chloe? I know it doesn't make sense, but at the time writing it, that's what I thought. ANYWAY. Master Fu picked out Nino and not one of the people on the Miraculous team. At least, that's my theory. If you don't like it, well, tough cookies, this is my story. :D No, please feel free to give criticisms. I need the feedback! Thanks again so much you guys, and I'll see you next week! ^-^


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I'M SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SORRY EVERYONE! I'm a horrible human being! I know I'm posting late. I hope no one is to angry with me. T-T I just started classes back up again after a week break and well... I just had way too much homework over the weekend. But I'm here. I'm posting now. Please don't be upset. I am bring you guys the best chapter ever! (So far). I'm really excited to see what everything thinks. So please, don't forget to review! I LOVE YOU ALL!

Chapter 4

Marinette continued to pace around her room, clutching her phone in her hand. "Should I call him?" she asked no one. Tiki was lounging around on the computer desk, she'd long given up trying to console the poor girl. Obviously, she need to figure this one out on her own.

"No, that's stupid, remember the last time you tried to call him? Maybe I should text? Oh, but that might look insensitive." She let out a groan, before throwing herself on to her bed. She stared down at her phone. Her fingers hovering over the call button, then switching over to text. She threw her head back and groaned again. "I'm hopeless, Tiki!"

"You're not hopeless, just confused." The Kwami floated over to the distraught girl. "You've got to stop thinking so much, and just do. You're always over complicating situations."

"I don't think I am this time. What if Adrien just wants be left alone? What if he thinks I'm weird by asking him how he's handling his father practically being a domestic terrorist?" Tiki shook her head at the teen.

"You worry too much. Adrien's a nice guy. He'll take comfort in the fact that you wanted to reach out to him."

"I just don't want to turn into Chloe. I don't want him to feel that I'm being pushy."

"Just ask him how he's doing. I'm sure he'll appreciate it." Marinette stared at her phone, then back to her friend. She gave her a "shooing" motion with her paws, and Marinette giggled. Tiki flew to a separate part of the room, to give her friend some privacy. Marinette watched her fly way into some corner of her bedroom. She looked back at the screen. There were only a handful of texts between her and Adrien, usually him asking how she was doing, and her responding with quick short replies. She quickly typed out what she wanted to say. As he thumb lied over the send button, she heard a knock at her skylight door.

"Princess!" she heard Chat's voice calling. "Open up." Phone forgotten, she leapt out of her bed and raced to the trap door that opened up to the balcony. When she opened the door, Chat was standing there with a big grin on his face. Marinette couldn't help but return his smile, even if she was a little confused.

"Chat? What are you doing here?"

"I-uh, I was in the neighborhood, wanted to check up on you. You seemed upset the last time we talked." Marinette closed the door behind her, the leaned against the railing on the balcony.

"Oh, well, I'm fine now." She gave the hero a small smile. She wanted to scream to the world that Adrien Agreste came to see her. That he took the time out of his obviously busy day to see her! Wait… "So… are you patrolling right now?"

"Something like that." He wondered around the small balcony, taking in the potted plants. _Lilacs, she likes lilacs._ He made a mental note. "I'm glad that you're feeling better. Have you spoken with Adrien?"

She was about the answer yes, when she realized that while she had spoken with the boy, it wasn't has himself. "Uh, no… not yet. I was just about to text him, but I'm finding it hard to do." The super hero turn his head in a cat-like manner, obviously curious. Marinette sighed. "I just don't want to bother him. I'm worried if I'm too pushy, he'll get annoyed with me."

"I don't think you have to worry about that." Marinette stared up into his green eyes. "He seemed flattered that you would offer your place to him. I don't think he would be annoyed if you just asked him if he was okay. I think he would appreciate it." _She has no idea._

"Funny, another of my friends just said the same thing." She smiled, reminding herself to take Tiki's advice more often. "Alright, well, I better not keep you to your patrols. Thanks for checking up on me."

"Oh. Yeah. No problem. Yeah. I should just, um, go and catch up with Ladybug." He wasn't expected to be dismissed like that, but he did have a job to do. He leaned down to grab her hand, placing a gentle kiss to the back of it. "Until next time, Princess." As he looked back up, he was happy to see the reaction he was expecting. Marinette's face slightly blushed with wide blue eyes. Before she could respond, he gave her a two figured salute and vaulted off of the balcony. Marinette stared at his departure before turning her eyes to her hand. Adrien had kissed the back of her hand… Adrien… _Oh my God!_

"Marinette!" Tiki flew up to the balcony. "You've got a call coming in."

"I do?" She turned to go back for her cellphone, still holding out her hand as if it stuck in place.

"No. I mean a Ladybug call. Chat's trying to get ahold of you."

"Crap." She said. Her mind was still processing the flirtatious grin and the kiss to her hand. "And here I thought he only flirted with one girl."

"Technically, he does." Tiki said giving the teen her own grin.

"Ugh. Okay. Got to get my game face on." She looked around to see if anyone was on the roof tops. Not a soul in sight. "Alright Tiki, spots on!"

Ladybug soared through the air, whirling her yo-yo. As she landed on roof to roof should couldn't help but continued to be concerned for her partner. What they were about to do, could be considered a crime, and although she was curious as to what Hawkmoth had hidden away, she didn't want this to hurt him more than he already seemed to be. So the question was, how does she tell her team without letting Adrien's secret slip?

She landed on the roof that was across from the Agreste Manner. How she had longed to travel those hallways again, but not as Ladybug as pervious times. But as Marinette. She wanted Adrien to invite her inside and they would hang out, play games, and enjoy one another's company. It seemed like a far off dream now. How she wished she could go back in time or use her Ladybug charm to make everything right again. She was going to need an insane amount of luck to make something like that happen.

 _"_ _If I can prove that I never broke the law, will you promise not to tell another soul what you saw?"_

 _"_ _No one else was in the room where it happened."_

 _"_ _Is that a yes?"_

 _"_ _Uh… yes."_

Ladybug turned as she saw two of her teammates singing along to the latest musical masterpiece. "Carapace, what are we going to do with you?" Ladybug said shaking her head. It wasn't that she didn't like the music he seemed to always have accompanying with him, but that he _always_ had it.

"Can't blame me though, it's a good tune." He tucked away his ear bud, pulling the other from Queen Bee's ear.

"Seriously, this is like the only time I can be free to listen to it. Any other time would ruin my reputation at school."

Ladybug rolled her eyes. "But it's popular. Wouldn't that make you more popular?"

Queen Bee seemed to consider this for a moment. "Your absolutely right Ladybug, I mean I'm so popular, anything I listen to would become a trend. Carapace and Ladybug both raised a brow at their teammate. "Just kidding." She said laughing.

"Great, you're all here." Everyone turned at the sound of Chat's voice. He walked up next to Ladybug, Rena Rouge not far behind him.

"What's going on Chat?" Every gathered around the feline hero.

"We're going to do some investigating of our own." He turn toward the manner. "We need to get in there before. The police have already been all around it, but they didn't find anything incriminating. I'm sure we could find something." His eyes narrowed as he thought about the safe again.

"Chat…" Ladybug laid a hand on his shoulder. "Are you sure that's a good idea? Maybe we should let the police handle this one." She didn't want to see Adrien in further turmoil. It was obvious that he wasn't handling his father's hidden identity all that well. He never talked about it.

"We have to. We need to get all the evidence we can in order to figure out what Hawkmoth wanted with the Miraculous Stones."

"But we already know." Rena said. "He wanted his wife back." She looked over at Ladybug. "Right?"

"I thought that was his main goal." She confirmed.

"But what if he had something else in mind?" Carapace said. "I'm with Chat on this one. We need to make absolutely sure that he didn't have any other further plans for the stones."

"We do not need another Hawkmoth running around. Nooroo is still recovering from the abuse of his powers." Everyone turned sullen. The thought of someone abuse the power of a kwami didn't sit well with any of them.

"Alright." Ladybug said at last. "But security is always tight around the Agreste Manner. How are we going to get in?"

"The cameras are down. We should be able to sneak in easily through Adrien's bedroom windows." Chat pointed to the side of the manner. Several windows seemed to take up the entire section of the house. Ladybug instantly recognized the windows of Adrien's room. It allowed Adrien to glance at freedom, but still be secure inside the building. His gilded cage.

"You're sure none of the alarms will go off?" Queen Bee said looking a little hesitant.

"Positive. The manner may be secure, but with no one living in it. There's no need. Besides, I've got a guy on the inside." Chat gave his lady a cat-ate-the-cannery smile. Ladybug rolled her eyes.

 _Of course he does._

"So, what are we waiting for? C'mon, let's go snoop." Rena said, taking the lead. The reporter in her was dying to get a look inside the manner. The rest were not far behind her. Once they were over the large wall, they quickly gathered under the windows to Adrien's bedroom. Chat used his baton to hoist himself to one. He made sure to look inside of the room, even though knowing no one would be in there, he still did not wish to give away his identity.

"Coast's clear." He called back down. He opened up one of the windows, teetering slightly on his baton. Rena and Queen Bee quickly held the baton in place, as he caught his balance. "Thanks." He leapt into the room. Ladybug swung her yo-yo into the room, gliding in as it recoiled. As everyone started to file in, she took in the surrounding room. She had only been in a few times. Times when she was unable to take in his room. She turned to stare at her partner, as he help his teammates into the bedroom. She hadn't realized how large it was compared to the boy who preoccupied it. He must have always felt so alone.

As everyone filed in, Chat rushed for the bedroom door. He peered into the hallway, empty, as usual. He listened for movement, but didn't hear any. "I pretty sure the house is completely empty." He opened the door further, as everyone walked out. They walked into the large foyer, taking in the steel, grey, and white interior. A large staircase that split off in two directions, one leading back to Adrien's bedroom, the other leading to a different wing.

"So, uh, where do we start looking?" Carapace said, taking in his surroundings. The house was impressive and searching could take hours, which was time they did not have.

"Adrien said that he saw his father in his study, which is up the other staircase, messing with a safe." Chat said, already starting up the stairs.

"Alright, it shouldn't be too hard to locate then." Ladybug said, falling after him. Everyone followed slowly behind, taking in the grandeur before them. Chat lead the team to his father study, almost knocking, before pushing up the giant doors. Everyone, following inside. The steal, grey, and white décor followed. _This house seems to have a theme_. Even Adrien's room, while adding color to the house, still felt slightly cold. The only color in this particular room, was the giant painting, the style of Gustav Klimt. The women in the painting was Adrien's mother. Ladybug had recognized her from the photos on Adrien's computer.

"Wow." Queen Bee walked up to the portrait, staring in awe. "Do you think it's an original?"

"Considering the painter died in 1918, I highly doubt it." Rena said, looking through some book shelves.

"They got a really good painter then. I could see this going off at auction for a similar price to an original." The blonde superhero tilted her head, examining the painting with a critical eye.

"I had no idea you were an art critic." Chat said, smiling.

"I know good taste when I see it." She said smiling back. Chat reached up to touch the portrait. A small section was pushed in, the painting lifted, showing a secret back, and a safe. Everyone quickly filed behind the black clad superhero.

"Any chance Adrien told you the combo to this?" Rena asked, eyeing the safe.

"Maybe a Miraculous power will help?" Carapace said.

"We don't want to risk transforming back too quickly." Ladybug, eyed the safe as well. She tried to think of everything she thought of when it came to Gabriel Agreste. His son's birthday? Too obvious. His birthday, also too obvious. Maybe an anniversary? But which one? His wedding? His first fashion show? His first award? The list could be endless. Not to mention if none of those worked, then they would be stuck with random combinations. They didn't have the time to mess with it.

Chat laid ear against the safe, listening. He turned the nob waiting for the telling clicking. He knew the combination, but again, identity issues. The las thing he needed right now, was everyone finding out he was Adrien. Nino was the welcomed exception, but the entire team, no thank you. He need to focus on this, not everyone huddling around him, asking him if he was okay, like at school. No, focus on this. See if his father was planning anything else. That was the goal.

As the safe opened, everyone held their breath. Books were piled on top of one another. A picture of Adrien's mom, sticking out of one. Nothing sinister. Nothing out of the ordinary. Chat moved around some of the books. Nothing. He dropped his head in defeat. He moved out of the way, so everyone else could take a look inside. He slid against the wall, where the picture once hung. Nothing. He couldn't believe it. Carapace slid down next to his friend. Unsure of what to say, but just wanting to be there for support. For some reason this meant a lot to him, but Carapace didn't know why.

Queen Bee suck her head out from the safe. It was just a bunch of old books. _What a total waste of time._ She looked over to Chat, he looked miserable. He must have really thought there would be some form of clue in here. She leaned a hand against the wall, but quickly realized she released some type of pressure valve. "Crap." She stumbled back as the floor below them began to move.

"Bee! What did you do?" Rena called out, as she fumbled to put the books back into the safe.

"I just touched something." She tried to yell over the rumbles.

"Everyone, hang on to something!" Ladybug cried, as the floor beneath them began to descend. She was expecting a trap, the floor to suddenly cave out from under them, but instead it was calm, almost like an elevator ride. Everyone still held on to whatever surface they could. Ladybug crouched down, Rena holding onto the remaining books for dear life. Carapace and Chat holding one another, and Queen Bee standing in a braced position with her knees facing one another.

As the floor came to a stop, everyone froze in place. Ladybug was the first to move, but only to stand to take in the room before her. Large white walls, or what appeared to be white. The room was coated in a faint darkness. She looked over to Chat, who seemed to understand what she wanted. Night-vision, did always come in handy. He moved slowly through the room. It was a large open area. As he stepped into the middle of it, a large round window opened. Metal framing surrounded the window, crossing and bending, forming the shape of a large butterfly in the middle. Chat turned as everyone was walking towards the window.

"Hawkmoth's lair." Someone had said, staring at the large window. A lone butterfly with white wings, floated down from the ceiling. It circled around the heroes before flapping its wings, gently flying out the window.

"This is where he did it." Chat said clenching his fists. "He akumatized people standing right here." He quickly punched the center the floor. Causing a large gasp from his friends. Ladybug was at his side quickly.

"There was nothing else we could have done, Chat. We stopped him. That's all we could do."

"He didn't even need to be in the city. It was no wonder we couldn't find him!" He turned his green eyes up to the girl he was in love with. Her blue eyes shining with concern. "He didn't even need to be in the city." He whispered. She gave him a deep look of sympathy. One he couldn't quite understand, but loved none-the-less. She _did_ care about him.

"Chat." She bit her lip before standing up, facing everyone else. "Let's give him a minute. Let's spread out and search for anything that might be considered dangerous." Everyone nodded and spread themselves out amongst the lair. She turned down to her teammate. "C'mon. We can't just…"

"I know." He said, slowly standing back up. "Thank you, M'lady." Chat starting off to another corner of the room, and began to search. Ladybug watched over him. Worried about the boy behind the mask. This couldn't have been easy on him. He must be thinking about how Hawkmoth was under his nose the whole time. If you put the flip side on to it. Chat Noir was also under Hawkmoth's nose too. Things couldn't get more complicated right now.

After an hour of searching Miraculous stones started to beep. This concluded their search. Nothing was found. They only thing that was recovered was a few different types of canes from Hawkmoth's collection. Or rather Gabriel Agreste's collection. Other than that, the raid was a bust, and Chat looked heartbroken. They met back up at the roof across from the manner to say goodbye. Chat looked at the tiles of the roof.

"Chat. It's okay. It was a good idea. And just because we didn't find anything, doesn't mean that there might have been something in there." Ladybug said, after the others had left. Her earring beeped at her again, and Chat did not look any less chipper than before. "Look, Chat, I have to go. Cheer up, okay?" When he didn't respond, she turned around and sprang off the roof with her yo-yo.

She turned her head, back to the boy she was swinging away from. He was just sitting there, on the roof, staring out into the distance. She had never felt so far away from him before. If Hawkmoth was no longer a threat, she would be worried about him being akumatized. How was she to reach him? He always felt comfortable reaching out to Ladybug, almost too comfortable. But this time it was different. This time, it was Adrien and not Chat who needed saving. She does didn't know how. She was a clumsy fool when it came to Adrien. She was surprised she could form sentences around him while as Ladybug. Maybe the mask was helping her? Maybe his mask was helping her? She sighed to herself as she landed on her balcony. She opened up the hatch that lead to her room, ask Tiki reappeared in the space in front of her.

"I know what you are thinking, Marinette. You have to really think this through."

"I can't just sit by and watch him hurt like this, Tiki." She scooped up her phone. It still had the unsent message to Adrien written. "I have to tell him know."

"Remember what is at stake here. It is not just Adrien, but everyone close to you will be in danger if you reveal who you are."

"What does that matter anymore? Hawkmoth is gone. There's no need to hide this from him. Especially because I know who he is!" She collapsed into her computer chair, swiveling around in it. She was so confused. She wanted Adrien to feel better, she wanted to take away the hurt in his eyes. She couldn't understand how he felt completely, but she wanted to so bad. She had never felt the urge to hug him, more now that she ever did. He needed someone. He needed…. Her. He needed his Ladybug. His lady.

She wanted to scream out loud. Everything was so frustrating. She wanted to badly to turn to her window and scream out to the world that she was Ladybug. She knew she couldn't do it. She knew that she would be risking everything. All for a boy… no… not a boy. For a friend, for a partner. She stared up at her Kwami.

"I don't know what to do Tiki. I can't fix this with a lucky charm this time. He's hurting and I can't be there for him." She squeezed her phone between her hands, worried it would break. She heard the plastic of her case, creaking, yet she squeezed harder. Worried that she would cry if she let go. She didn't want to cry, she was tired of crying. She wanted everything back the way it was. Why couldn't everything go back to the way it was? A tear escaped from her eye. That was all it took. They started to escape one by one. Cascading down her face. She did nothing to stop them. Nothing to banish them away. She couldn't.

Tiki rested a paw against her wielder and friend. This poor child had been through too much. And while the wielders always seemed to be able to carry everything, she was always there for each one of them. Marinette was no exception to that. She nuzzled the girl's cheek, trying to comfort her the best way she knew how. Marinette leaned into the nuzzle as well, taking some comfort from Tiki.

"I know this is difficult, and confusing, but that doesn't mean you can't think things through. You know what would happen." Tiki stared up at Marinette, compassion and understanding in her eyes.

"I know. I just feel so hopeless right now. Adrien's so upset. I'm worried he might do something stupid too." Marinette rubbed her eyes.

"You'll see him at school tomorrow. Talk to him." Tiki gave her a reassuring smile, and Marinette's eyes widened.

"I can barely talk to him through this stupid phone. What in the world am I supposed to say to him?"

"Just tell him that you're worried about him. Ask him to come over to the shop? Maybe he can have a pastry." She winked and Marinette blushed. Why did that sound so strange. And why was she picturing herself as the pastry? She shook her head to clear it of her wondering thoughts.

"Okay. I'll do it. I'm terrified, but I'll do it." Tiki smiled at the girl. She knew she couldn't keep Marinette from spilling the secret forever, but she need to stall for now. It wouldn't be long before everything else started to change again. She wanted to protect her from what was coming. She was doing the right thing. At least, that's what Tiki kept telling herself.

Across town, Master Fu sat in the lotus position, meditating. He hummed to himself as he connected to the spiritual energy around him. He was searching. He scanned the city again, but without the help of Wayzz it would be difficult to sense what he needed to find. He sighed to himself, as he came back to his body. He would have to call everyone back. He would have to do what must be done, though it was not easy.

He stood up from his meditation spot and revealed the hiding place of the Miraculous Box. He placed a hand on the lid, looking down at it sorrowfully. He had chosen well this time. He had trusted the stones to those he found worthy and they had proven themselves time and time again. He would have to trust that they would do the right thing.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thank you all for being so patient. I hope you really enjoy this chapter it was so much fun to write. I also, would like to give a shout out to those who wrote in the reviews from Chapter 3 and 4. Thank you guys so much! They are so much fun to read!

pinksakura271 - I love that you love the dynamic between Carapace and Rena. They are going to be so much fun to write about! I'm also glad that you are enjoy the story so far. Keep the cat puns coming they are pur-fection, and great tools to use when I start running out XD

Demi Clayton - Thank you so much for your kind words. I really needed to read something nice this week, it's been rough.

Well, that's all the time I have folks. Time to turn this over to the characters I don't own, along with anything related to the Miraculous Universe, even thought I would love to write for them... just saying... Anywho, on with the story!

Chapter 5

Marinette rushed out the front door of the bakery. Her bag, barely hanging onto her shoulder. She refused to be late again! She stayed up way to late, looking at the unsent message to Adrien, wondering if she should send it. If she should edit it, just one more time. If she should delete it and start over. So many ifs but not enough actions. She was surprise she had a full battery on the thing now, considering that she couldn't remember if she plugged it in to charge.

She raced up the steps of the school, nearly slammed opened her class door and skidded to a stop, right in front of the boy she had just been thinking about. He gave her a smile, that didn't reach his eyes, and she felt everything all over again. All the emotions and hurt racing back to the surface, for the boy in front of her. She took a deep breath before giving him a smile back, a normal one, not the one that was always too big and awkward, and internally fist pumped for her normalcy. "Morning, Adrien." She heard herself say before she even thought it. His smile faltered for a minute, clearly shocked, before widening a bit.

"Morning, Marinette. Late as usual." He teased.

"I'm right on time." She said taking her seat, as the bell rang. Ayla came rushing into the room, and gave her friend a curious glance. Marinette just shrugged, while Nino and Adrien snickered at Ayla's confused expression.

"You're actually on time today. That's impressive, what's the occasion?" Ayla said as she took her seat next to her best friend.

"No occasion, just wanted to be on time for once." She pulled out her sketch book and notebooks for class.

"Uh, huh." She looked to the two boys in front of them. She leaned over to her friend. "You'll fill me in later, right?" Ayla whispered so the two in front wouldn't hear.

Marinette nodded, a smile still on her lips. Ayla beamed at her friend.

"Alright everyone, settle down. Please, get out your notebooks and start taking notes. We'll be covering your new history assignment." Their teacher started writing on the board, and class had officially begun.

Adrien felt distracted all day. He couldn't help it. His mind kept wondering back to the lair and everything that was not found. There should have been something. Doesn't every villain keep like a hidden agenda or a hidden master plan locked up somewhere? What if he kept it somewhere other than the lair? Adrien's mind kept racing with questions. He needed answers. This couldn't be the end. This couldn't be how things ended. It was too simplistic. Too easy to take him down. His father was anything but simplistic. Gabriel Agreste had something up his sleeve. Adrien just needed to figure out what it was.

The bell rang again, signaling lunch. Adrien grabbed his books and bag and left without saying a word. He needed to get back to the mansion. He need to get back into that lair. If not as Chat Noir, maybe as Adrien. There had to be something in there.

A sharp tug on the back of his collar, forced him to a stop. He turned to see what was preventing him from finding out the truth, only to see is best friend staring down at him.

"Uh, just where are you going?"

"Home." Adrien said bluntly.

"As in my home, or your home?" Nino let go of his friend to cross his arms.

"My home." He looked around the classroom as everyone was filing out for lunch. He led his friend to secluded corner. "I've got to get back in there. There has to be something." He said in a hushed voice.

"We search for over an hour, dude. What do you think you're going to find that the 5 of us didn't?"

"There has to be something!" Adrien nearly screamed.

"Calm down, dude. I'm your friend, remember?" Adrien sighed. Nino was right. He was too wound up. If he went to his home, and still didn't find anything. There's no telling what he would do. "You need to take your mind off it, dude. Let's go get lunch and finish off the rest of the day. You don't even have to worry about patrol tonight, I'll call up Rena. Maybe she'll try to get along with me this time." Nino rolled his eyes at the thought of Rena Rouge getting along with anyone. She was one tough cookie to break.

"You're right. I'm too wound up." He gave another deep sigh. "But I can't help it."

"We just need to go somewhere, where you'll feel relaxed, dude."

"If you're looking for relaxation, Marinette's family's bakery is the place to be." Ayla voice called over. Adrien and Nino froze in shock for a moment, scared for how much she may have heard. They turned to the sound of her voice to see Marinette and Ayla still sitting in their seats. Ayla waved at them. Nino and Adrien gave a slight wave back. Marinette made eye contact with Adrien briefly before blushing and turning away. _So much for changing. I thought for sure she was talking to me normally earlier._ He couldn't really blame her though, with all the photos she had of him in her room, he even found himself blushing slightly. "So, how 'bout it. You guys up for heading to the bakery?"

"Sure. I love your dad's macaroons, Marinette." She blushed a little more at Nino's compliment, but she stared at him with appreciation, obvious pride for her father beaming through.

"You can let him know when we get there." She said to him. Nino smiled brightly at the girl.

"What are we waiting for?" Adrien said. He rushed up to where Marinette was seated, offering his head. "Ready to go?" She looked down at his hand, before looking back up at him. Her blue eyes warry and curious, almost like a cat. Adrien tried not to laugh as he made the comparison in his head. She took his hand and he escorted her down the stairs. "Lead the way." _Princess._ He said with a smile. Marinette smiled back, as they left the classroom. They walked down the stairs of the school, in an awkward silence until Adrien spoke. "So, tell me, what is it like living in a bakery?"

She laughed. "It's not all that different from living in a normal house. You've been in there before."

"Yeah, but I never got the chance to ask. We were busy practicing."

"You mean playing video games." She laughed again. "That feels like ages ago."

"You can say that again." He thought back to the time when he and Marinette were in the gaming tournament together. She was brilliant at the game, but he thought better of her when she wanted to give up her position so that Max could live out his dream. Of course, he knew that she needed to compete. So, he was more than happy to give up his position to Marinette. "You were amazing, by the way." She gave him a quizzical look. "Giving up your position to Max. That was cool of you. I don't know if I ever got a chance to let you know that."

"Oh." She blushed again. "I – it was no big deal. I felt like I kind of wiggled my way into the compaction anyway. I felt bad about it. It only seemed fair to give it back to Max." _God, I was so stupid back then. I was so obsessed with Adrien that I stomped on people just to get close to him. I really am the worst kind of person._

"Even still, I thought it was really cool of you to do. Not a lot of people would have stepped down like that." He stared at her as they kept walking. "You really are a good person, Marinette." Her cheeks became a little pink. He realized that he like seeing her blush. It made him feel good, because she was feeling good.

"Thank you. You really are nice, Adrien. You know, I want to apologize for how we first met. I judged you too quickly, and I'm sorry."

"I think that's like the 5th time you've apologized for that." He laughed. "It's over already. And you don't feel that way about me anymore. Let it go."

"Sorry." She said looking down. "I just still feel awful about it. I can't help myself."

"All is forgiven. Please, stop apologizing for it." He smiled at her, hoping to catch her eye. She looked over at him. His face closer than it was before. His smiling reaching his bright green eyes. They danced with delight. She couldn't help the smile that formed on her face. He seemed to be feeling a little better now. The feeling of joy causing the butterflies in her stomach to twist and flip around.

"I'll try to remember that, then." She giggled a little, and Adrien found that he enjoyed the sound. Light and tinkling, like a bell.

Some ways back behind them, Ayla and Nino were practically forgotten. Not that either of them minded, they liked seeing their two friends getting closer together. Nino turned his eyes away from the scene in front of him to stare at his girl. Ayla was beautiful. Soft, mocha skin. Thick, wavy red hair. Fierce golden-brown eyes that he just loved to stare into. His girl was perfect. She turned those eyes onto him, and he could feel himself slightly melt. She had such a cocky smile, but he loved it. He knew that he did something right, when a subtle blush painted her cheeks.

"You're giving me that look again." She told him.

"What look?" he said with what he knew was a goofy grin.

"That look! It just screams, 'God, I want this girl.'" She giggled, still blushing.

"You've got me pegged, babe. I'm not going to lie to you." He stopped their movements and kissed her gently at first. _So soft_. She leaned in as he started to pull away. So, he went back, deepening the kiss a little more. She felt wonderful against him. Soft, and lush. He moved his hand to the side of her face, angling her head, so he could take more of her in. Ayla gladly accepted, putting her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. He moved his hand to nap of her neck, holding her in place. They broke away at the same time. Holding on to one another. Sharing one another's breathes. "You're so beautiful." He whispered to her.

"You're not so bad, yourself." She whispered back, causing him to smile.

"Well, I can see they're preoccupied." Nino turned to the blonde that spoke up. He didn't break contact with Ayla, not until she lowered her arms. He looked over at her. Her embarrassment obvious by their public display. "Did you save any room for lunch, by chance?" Adrien teased.

"Don't be a hater, dude." Nino smiled, wrapping his arms around his girl's shoulders. "Ayla's kisses are sweeter than anything in that bakery." He turned to Marinette. "No offense."

"None taken." Marinette said smiling. She loved seeing her friend happy. When Ayla finally looked up at her, Marinette winked, causing Ayla to blush more. Marinette giggled at her friend's embarrassment.

"Well, you two can stand out here, and continue what you were doing. I'm going to get some food that my trainer will hate me for later." Adrien held the door open for Marinette as the two walked inside. Nino and Ayla not far behind. The smells of baking bread and sweet frosting hit his senses, and his mouth began to water.

"Marinette!" Sabine called over from behind the counter.

"Hi, mama." Marinette waved. "I've brought some friends for lunch, hope that's okay."  
"You should have warned us, we would have whipped something up." Tom called from the back. Marinette and her mother giggled. Marinette's mother raced around the counter to greet her daughter's friends.

"I feel like I don't see you all enough." She turned her eyes to Adrien and smiled brightly at him. It took him by surprise at first, he was expecting pity. She reached over for him and embraced him, much like Nino's mom. He accepted it, embracing back. "Ruguo nin xuyao renhe dongxi, qing suishi xunwen. Women jiang yirujiwang di zhichi ni."* She said to him in Mandarin.

"Thank you." He replied. When she let go, she was still beaming at him, which caused his own smile to widen too. He looked over at Marinette, who was wearing an adorably cut confused face.

"What did she say to you?" she whispered. Before he could answer Sabine stepped in.

"Never you mind. Alright now, who's hungry?" Everyone called out an "I" and Sabine took her spot at the register.

"These are fresh from the oven." Tom said carrying a tray to baked goods. "Only the best for our girl." He winked at his daughter.

"I think you mean, only the best for Paris." She teased.

"Sounds like someone is ready to take over the family business." Her father laughed. Adrien, loved the dynamic her family had. It was warm and cozy, much like their bakery. Marinette was more than in her element. Throughout their lunch, she was laughing and holding a real conversation with him. Tom and Sabine would come and check on them every now and then, even as the bakery started getting a little busier with the lunch rush.

"Papa, let me help." Marinette said, standing up. Tom gave her a stern look, half serious, half joking.

"No, you are here for lunch, you will eat lunch." He hmphed, before walking away, taking care of another customer. Marinette couldn't help her giggle.

"It's cool that your parents just want you to relax." Nino said. "If my parents ran a business, I'm sure me and all my sibling would be helping, even if we only stopped by for a bite to eat." Nino took a sip from his drink.

"They just don't want me to feel pressured about taking on the business." She took her own sip; their food long eaten and were only chatting away their lunch hour.

"But would you?" Ayla asked. "I mean with senior year closing in on us, thinking about our futures might be a good thing."

"I don't know. I mean, I've thought about it, but that would mean, putting my dream aside." She looked down at the table.

"Your dream?" Adrien asked, not wanting her to look so dejected.

"Marinette's a killer designer. She won that bowler hat contest, remember?"

"Oh yeah, the one with the feather." Adrien loved the design. It was amazing. The trick with her signature too, that was impressive. The feather, not so much.

"I'm so sorry about that. If I had known that you had an allergy, I would have never put the feather in there, at least not a real one." She rambled.

"Don't worry about it. We had to change the feather out when we did the photo shoot. So, it wasn't a big deal." His eyes had gotten too red and puffy because of the real feather. While his father had liked the design, he thought Adrien would be able to handle it, considering that he wasn't touching it. His body however, did not. They had to reschedule the shoot, and replace the feather with a fake one. The pictures turned out great, but his father did not seem pleased. _Like he ever seemed pleased._

He looked around at the table, everyone staring at him. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No, you just looked…" Nino started but seemed hesitant to finish.

"Adrien?" Marinette called his attention, which he gave. "Are you okay?" Her blue bell eyes filled with concern. Not pity. Not sorrow. Concern. The last thing he wanted was to have someone else worry about him so he did what he knew best.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Her face fell, instantly. She turned away from him.

"Okay. If you say so." He looked over at Nino and Ayla, both avoiding eye contact.

"Guys, I'm fine." He reassured them. Nino gave a quick nod of his head. Ayla kept staring at the wall beside her. Marinette continued to look at the table. "C'mon guys, I was supposed to come her to relax remember?" No one said anything.

"Just wish you would talk to us, dude." Nino finally said, breaking the silence.

"I am. I told you, I'm fine."

"Okay." Marinette said again. "If you do need to talk to someone though, I'm all ears, okay?" she gave him a light smile. Adrien felt a little better, and nodded at the girl next to him.

"Well, I guess we should start heading back now." Ayla said standing up and stretching. Nino was up after her, taking her hand. Adrien and Marinette moved at the same time, causing their forearms to brush past one another. Marinette jerked, trying to apologize, but tripped and grabbed onto the table, her legs fell out from under her. Adrien quickly grabbed onto her waist with one hand and the table with another. Her legs between his. Her arm around his shoulder. Blue eyes wide with shock and fear. His eyes staring into her. It was a minute before he found himself again, he pulled her up by her waist, and got her on her feet again.

"You okay?" he asked her, his hand on her waist, and her hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah…" her face was on fire. She could just imagine the cherry tomato she must have resembled. "Thank you." She removed her hand from his shoulder, and felt his hand slide away from her waist. She took a step back, and tried to calm her rapidly beating heart.

"You sure? Your arm doesn't look too good." She stared down at her arm. A bright red mark, where she had slammed it on the table, visible. That was going to be a nasty bruise by tomorrow. "Maybe we should get you some ice." Adrien walked away to Sabine at the counter. At the serious look on Adrien's face she turned her immediate attention to the young man.

Marinette watched as her mother and Adrien spoke quickly and her mother dashed to the back of the store. No question she was getting ice for her clumsy daughter, Marinette sighed to herself. Nino and Ayla were still over by the door standing, obviously worried about her well-being.

"I'm fine, guys. It's just a bruise. Why don't you two go on ahead. We'll catch up." She gestured to the door with her chin. Ayla turned to the door, then back to her friend.

"You _will_ fill me in later." She said with her 'Take-No-Prisoners' tone.

"When have I never?" Marinette smiled. Ayla and Nino left, as Adrien came back with the ice pack. "Thanks." She applied the ice to her arm, flinching slightly. _Yup, definitely going to bruise._ "Sorry about all this." She said, gesturing to the icepack and her arm.

"Don't apologize. Happens to all of us. You wouldn't believe my luck." He said lamely. She smiled, sadly at him. He sighed.

"But seriously, Adrien, if you ever need someone. Don't hesitate to call, okay?" He nodded again. He was glad she was offering, but he didn't want to get her hopes up.

"You're a good friend, Marinette." She smiled at him, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"We, uh, should probably catch up to Nino and Ayla now." She marched off, cradling her arm and the ice pack.

"I'm sorry Marinette." He whispered. He knew he was hurting her. Knew that if she continued her infatuation with him, she would only end up hurt. Even if he didn't have his Miraculous to worry about, he was too mixed up right now. Left felt like up and right felt like a pit fall into space, where his sense of direction would be confused all over again. Besides, it wasn't like he could reciprocate her feelings. He was in love with Ladybug.

 _"_ _You're a good friend, Marinette."_ The words kept repeating themselves around in her head. She was a good friend, but she wanted to be more. She wanted to be the person he saw when she was wearing the mask. She wanted to be his Lady. We'll she was his Lady, technically, but he didn't know that. Only she knew that.

 _Maybe I should tell him_. _No! It would only complicate things more, maybe?_

Marinette had never felt so confused in her life. Telling Adrien would be a good thing on one hand. She would be able to share her secret life with him. They would be able to have complete trust in one another. Everything would work out, he would fall in love with her and they would get married and lived happily ever after. She blushed at the thought. On the other hand, he currently only saw her as a friend. If she revealed herself, there was the strong possibility of him being disappointed. Maybe not disappointed in a way that would be soul crushing to Marinette, but disappointed because he thought he was in love with someone, but was wrong. Marinette knew that deep in her heart, Adrien would not be so disappointed to find out she was Ladybug. No, he would be disappointed because he would be slightly heartbroken. If he only sees her as a friend, he may never grow to have romantic feelings for her. And there in-lied what she was truly afraid of. That Adrien would not reject her, but look at her as a friend. No longer would Chat Noir be a flirty, funny kitty that she had grown to admire and bond with. No longer would he try to woo her and make her feel special. Everything would change. Their entire relationship as partners could deuterate.

Marinette hadn't realized that she walked all the way to school, and had taken her seat already. Class had yet to begin, but she couldn't recall how she got there. She looked around the room. Adrien was sitting in his spot. Nino next to him. Ayla was staring at her, concern etched on her face. "You okay, girl?" Marinette stared at her friend. Unable to think of what to say. She needed someone to confined in. She need to tell someone, and while Tikki was great when it came to Adrien drama, Ayla was her best friend, and she needed her.

"Can you come over? After school? I need tell you something." Ayla looked a little suspicious, turning her eyes to the blonde sitting in front of them. "Just come over." Marinette said, ignoring her friends pointed looks.

"Marinette are you absolutely sure you want to do this? You realize what is act stake if you do this?" Tikki said following the pacing girl around. Marinette couldn't keep still. Ayla would be over soon and her stomach was flipping. It was more than just butterflies, she wanted to throw up. She wanted to hide under her bed. What was her friend going to say? She kept this from her for so long. She kept her secret and Ayla's too. It wasn't hard. She'd done it fantastically, but now she was about to change the course of their friendship forever. She was scared. She felt like a 5-year-old, lost in the park. Alone, terrified, and near close to panic.

The door to Marinette's room opened, Ayla giving her friend a confused look at her near panic state. "Woah, okay what is up with you?" she closed the door, walking toward her friend. Concern and confusion evident on her face. "Talk to me." Marinette stared up at her friend. Ayla's hazel eyes voicing nothing but concern for her friend. Marinette straightened, and moved Ayla to the computer chair.

"You have to promise not to get mad." She started. "I would have told you sooner, I swear. But it's difficult. It's complicated" She fiddled with her fingers, obviously nervous about her friend's reaction. "The second part of this is that you have to keep it a secret! I mean it Ayla. It's not because I do not trust you, it's partly because well, I don't know what would happen to you if you told anyone."

"Okay, you're scaring me, girl. What is going on?" Marinette took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"It's easier if I show you. Partly, because I don't think you'll believe me if I tell you out right." She turned away from her friend. "Tikki, spots on." Instead of her normal shout out to her Kwami, her voice was quiet, almost heartbreakingly so. But Ayla knew, as soon as she heard the catch phrase. She had repeated similar words to her own Kwami. Her voice was stolen from her, as she watched Marinette melt away and reappear as Ladybug.

The blue haired teen slowly turned around to face her friend. Ayla's mouth was hung open. For the first time Marinette had seen, Ayla was speechless. After a few more minutes of Ayla just staring and Marinette growing more nervous, she blurted. "Say something, please." Ayla blinked and stared at the hero in front of her. How she had longed, to know Ladybug's identity. This was not how she thought she would find out. But here it was. Her best friend, the girl she spent the most time with, turned out to be a superhero she had admired since she moved to France.

"I, I don't know what to say." Ayla stated. Marinette's face fell. Ayla noticed immediately and tried to back petal. "I – I didn't mean it like that. I just, I don't have anything to say. I should have known, to be honest." Looking back, all the signs were there. Marinette would disappear, Ladybug would appear. Marinette had a close relationship with Ladybug. Marinette had some form of communication with Ladybug, and had a connection with the hero that Ayla only dreamed about.

Ayla shook her head, smiling to herself at her own stupidity. She stared up at her transformed friend, still smiling. Marinette looked so scared. She took the girl by her gloved hand. "You're Ladybug." She whispered. "I really should have known. And I call myself a great reporter. I'm so ashamed of myself." Marinette smiled at her friend.

"Well, I did a great job at moving you off the trail." She said trying not to cry. Ayla wasn't mad at her. The relief she felt was insurmountable. A tear rolled down her face, and Tikki let the transformation go. Marinette transformed back into herself and wrapped her arms around Ayla's neck. Ayla returned the hug, grinning.

When the pulled away, Ayla couldn't help herself. "I'm friends with Ladybug! Wait, wait! Better! I'm best friends with Ladybug!" She danced around the room, smiling. Marinette giggled at her friend's antics.

"Shh… keep it down." She said between giggles. Ayla stopped suddenly, with wide eyes and stared at the door to Marinette's room, waiting for something, but it didn't look like she was overheard.

"Right, sorry." She said.

"Besides, there's another reason I wanted to tell you about this." Ayla climbed onto Marinette's bed and patted the spot next to her. Marinette let out a deep sigh and sat next to her friend. She filled her in on everything. How she discovered who Chat was. How she felt about it. The things he said when they were leaving the bakery.

"That boy." Ayla gritted.

"Don't be that way." Marinette said. "I'm just worried. I really don't know what to do. If I reveal myself, everything will change." She looked down at Tikki and Trixx, who had joined them during their conversation.

"This is seriously complicated." She turned her golden eyes to her best friend. "But there's only one thing you can really do." Marinette's face became filled with hope. "You have to take it slow. Revealing yourself, might not be the best route, right now. Adrien's messed up in the head about his dad right now. If you do this, it might just confuse him more, and then you'll really be rejected. Just," she put her hand on Marinette's. "give him time. Let him come to you."

"Yeah, your right. There's no need to rush things, right?" Marinette smiled, which Ayla returned with full force.

"Besides, if he can't figure it out, well, sounds like you've got a lot of work to do. Whip him into shape, girl!" Marinette giggled and Ayla joined in. "You know," Ayla said once their giggles faded, "I should have known when I got my Miraculous." At the sound of Ayla's voice Trixx looked up from her spot on the desk with Tikki. "You gave me something I could never repay." She looked at the fox Kwami and smiled. Trixx winked at her wielder, having grown quite fond of the teenager.

"You deserved it. I couldn't think of anyone else, besides Chat who I would want to fight by my side." Marinette smiled. Tikki nodded her head with pride. Marinette had grown so much in the last year. It was amazing the transformation she had have with such a short time with the Miraculous. She had chosen someone who was more than worthy of wilding such a strong responsibility, and Tikki couldn't be prouder to fight along her side.

"You're gonna make me cry." Ayla said throwing a pillow at her friend. Trixx, not one to miss out on a good pillow fight, found a cotton ball and through it at Tikki. The Kwami was caught off guard and took a direct hit to the face. Trixx laughed out loud, until another cotton ball hit her in the face. Soon, wielders and Kwami were amid an all-out war, involving pillows. Tikki and Marinette hid behind the bed, while Trixx and Ayla were trying to avoid the pillows behind the small computer chair.

It happened so suddenly, Tikki was winding up for a throw, aiming directly at Trixx's head, when she felt it. She looked over at Trixx. She had stopped moving too. Ayla and Marinette were still laughing, throwing pillows at one another. Trixx's eyes were distant, but she soon turned her gaze to Tikki's. Tikki could feel here blue eyes going wide. It was too soon. There had to be more to do.

Trixx flew over to her Kwami friend. "Tikki." She said. Tikki nodded. Trixx's closed her eyes in pain. She was just starting to get used to a new wielder. It wasn't fair. She felt a little paw on her own. She looked up to Tikki, with tears in her eyes. "We've been summoned."

"Summoned?" Ayla said noticing her Kwami's painful expression.

"Master Fu." Tikki said, staring at Marinette.

"Master Fu? Is he…" Tikki didn't answer. She didn't know what to tell her wielder, whom she had grown so attached to.

"What's going on?" Ayla said looking around from the Kwamis to her best friend.

"Master Fu is summing us. It can only mean that we are no longer need, and have to go back." Trixx's resentment was apparent in her voice.

"Go back?!" Ayla and Marinette said at the same time.

"What do you mean go back?" Marinette said looking at Tikki. Tikki lowered her head, closing her eyes, trying to find the right thing to say what would ease Marinette's mind, but nothing came. She felt the same type of resentment that Trixx felt. Tikki was growing accustom to Marinette, but this was her duty as well. She either watch her wielder's die, or had to leave, because her mission was done. Why was this time so much harder than the previous ones? "Tikki." She flinched at Marinette's quiet, broken voice.

"Marinette, it's time for us, all of us, to go back into hibernation. It's time to say goodbye."

A/N: Don't hate me! There is a purpose to this, I promise. So, notes? I don't know what to really talk about right now. I've already written the next 3 chapters, slow work week and school week for me. YAY! I'm very excited for these next few chapters, I will not give out spoilers so don't even ask. σ(≧ε≦ｏ) I know the story has been slow going, but thank you all for your support! I hope you keep coming back! See you next week! OH BTW! I have a twitter! If you guys want to get story updates and what I'm writing, follow me there. I posted a few things related to the story this week, then I realized, you guys probably don't know I have one. Anyway find me Hollipop8 I also post to here when I upload videos to and Youtube. So yeah... Love you guys!

*If you need anything, please feel free to ask. We will always support you.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: So I update this last night, but it appears something went wrong. Not sure what. But yeah. I don't remember what I said when I originally updated, so I'll give shout outs in the next update. However, I am still looking for Beat Readers. I'm currently doing all the planning, writing, drafting, editing, the whole kit and caboodle myself. Let me know if you are interested. I would love to hear constructive criticisms to make the story better. Thanks for being patient guys! I LOVE YOU ALL!

Chapter 6

Adrien did not get any sleep that night. He was sure that Nino was tossing just as much as he was. Plagg was sleeping at his side, but not as peacefully as he usually did. The news was too much. It was too soon. Plagg and Wayzz had floated into the room as Nino and Adrien were just finishing up a plan to try to get back into his house. They broke the news, and realized that they would have to go to Master Fu in the morning. They would go back to being inanimate objects. Back to their hibernated state. And Adrien, he would go back to be the son of a man who didn't care enough to think about him. He would go back to his mundane existence. Only as Chat Noir had he truly felt like he had accomplished something great. And now, it was being taking away from him.

Plagg had explained to him that it was normal. Once the balance had been set back, and everything was back into place, there was no need for the Miraculous Stones anymore. There was no need for Chat Noir or Ladybug. He would truly never find out who she was. He would never get to know her real identity. That hurt the most.

Plagg, moaned in his sleep. Out of habit, Adrien petting the space between his Kwami's ears, he instantly relaxed. He hadn't realized just how natural it was to have Plagg around. He'd grown so accustom to him being by his side. It had only been a year, but they had grown a friendship that he wouldn't trade for the world. He hated to admit it, but he was also growing accustom to the smelly cheese that the cat had requested after every mission.

 _I'm gonna miss that smell_. At the thought, Adrien made a face. That was a thought he never dreamed would occur. But nor was the thought of Plagg leaving. He never imagined a day without his Kwami friend. He never dreamed of not being Chat Noir. Thinking about it realistically, how would he explain that once he started a relationship? When he got a job? When he got married? The thought of a blue haired bride popped into his head. His face flushed slightly.

It wasn't a possibility now. He was never going to find His Lady. _Are you sure that bride was Ladybug?_ A voice called out from inside his head. His lunch with Marinette popped into his head. Her laughter, her smile. Her clumsiness. She was adorable. But she was a friend. Nothing more.

He rolled around turning away from the small cat by his side. He wanted to get some fresh air. It felt stuffy in the room and he could use a walk. It wasn't that late, right? He turned to his phone that was charging, a bright 10PM lit up the screen. Yeah, it was late. "You can't sleep either?" Plagg said. Adrien turned around to find the Kwami rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He wanted to say something about his "either" comment, but thought better of it.

"Yeah. Sorry, if I woke you." Plagg floated above his wielder, staring down at the blonde-haired boy. He would never admit it, but he had grown to like the kid. He was probably in his top ten of wielders, and there were a lot of wielders. While the kid was a hopeless romantic, he was also genuine and deserving of wielding his Miraculous. He would be lying if he said, he wasn't sad to go. If anything, he was nearly crushed.

Plagg looked out the window of the guest bedroom, and turned back to his wielder. "One more run, for old times' sake?" He smiled, his cat eyes glowing in the dark. Adrien smiled back, and pulled himself out of the bed. "Plagg, claws out." He said quietly, but it didn't lack the excitement he always had when he turned into Chat Noir.

Chat swung from roof top to roof top. He loved the feeling of the wind on his face, and the freedom that always came as he leapt through the night. Chat Noir's final night, was going to be all about him. He wanted to climb the Eiffel Tower and stare across the horizon at the city he loved.

As he was about to move to another roof top, the Eiffel Tower insight, movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. Marinette was out on her balcony. His enhanced night vision allowed him to see all of her. She was in her pajamas, a small tang top, and matching pink pants. Her blue hair in the twin tails. But her eyes were different. They were filled with sorrow. He felt a pang of sympathy in his chest for her. He realized he didn't like seeing so upset. Before he realized it, he was landing on her balcony behind her.

"Princess?" He called out in a calming voice. She spun around quickly, shock on her face.

"Chat. Wh – what are you doing here?" she wiped at her face with her hand, quickly. Her face was red and blotchy, her eyes were swollen and red. She'd been crying. But she stood toward him, trying to act strong.

"Princess, is everything okay?" She sniffed.

"I'm fine." She turned her back to him. He walked up to her. She leaned her forearms on the balcony, crossing one another, putting up a barrier. She even turned her head away from him. He was a little upset by her coldness towards him. He must have done or said something, because as soon as he thought it, she instantly relaxed.

"No. I'm not fine." She said, a tear sliding down her face. His eyes widened. He hadn't expected her to show such vulnerability. She always seemed so strong, especially recently. Sure, clumsy and a little shy, but he'd seen her around everyone else. As the student body president, she had a take charge attitude. He almost believed, that if she wanted to, she could concur anything she set her mind to. But here she was a normal girl, by herself, and not allowing anyone to see her tears. No one that is, except for him. He was humbled suddenly. Another tear slipped down her cheek, and Chat, out of sheer instinct, reached towards her.

It was hard to say who moved first, but Chat found Marinette in his arms, her crying, sobbing into his chest. He squeezed her tighter, wondering what could have happened that made her break like this. His mind went to the worst of places. Had she been hurt? Had one of her friends been? What about her parents? He was starting to get a little anxious. But he held on. He rubbed petted her hair, whispered to her, telling it was going to be alright. Stuff his mother used to do, when he was younger.

Her sobs eventually faded, and small hiccups were all she could produce. He felt her start to pull away, and he let her. She rubbed at her face. Eyes still swollen. He wished he had something for her, but all her could offer was his tail, and he didn't think it would be comfortable on her already swollen eyes. She took one last deep breath, before staring up at him. Her blue eyes were shining from her tears, making the blue really pop in the moonlight. He had to blink to keep from staring. "Sorry." She mumbled.

"You have nothing to apologize for." He whispered. "Are you feeling better?"

"Strangely enough, yes." She gave him a weak smile. He returned it.

"Do you… wanna, I don't know, talk… about… it?" he didn't want things to get awkward, but they were fast becoming just that.

"Chat. I would, normally, but this is something that I have to deal with on my own." She sighed. "Honestly, I want nothing more than to vent, but I just… I can't." she turned her head down.

"Just, tell me that everyone is okay? Like your family and friends aren't hurt or anything like that right?" She blinked up at him.

"Oh, God. I'm sorry, of course you would think something like that. No, no, everyone I know is perfectly fine. For the most part anyway. I'm just…" she hesitated, obviously looking for the right words to say. "I guess you could say, I'm losing a friend. She's, uh, moving. She has to leave, and I don't want her to go, but I can't stop her." Adrien blinked. He tried to remember people from their class. Someone was moving away? Who? He'd have to ask around after he met with Master Fu tomorrow. "I guess I'm just not coping with it well. I just found out tonight." He could relate to that. He didn't think it was a wise idea, telling her about his Kwami having to go back into hibernation, but he wanted to comfort her in some way.

"I understand. It's hard losing a friend, especially like that." Marinette nodded her head, still looking at the ground. "Come with me." He scooped her up, before she could reply and whisked her off from her roof top.

"Chat!" she cried out as she held onto his neck. "Where are you taking me?"

"You'll see." He set out for his pervious destination with Marinette tightly in his arms.

As the landed on the top of the Eiffel Tower, Marinette still clung on to him. Why was this so much better when she was Ladybug. This was terrifying without the support of her yo-yo. "Is the Princess afraid of heights?" Chat teased.

"I don't think so, I just wasn't expecting this." She said defensively. Chat chuckled as he let her down. She held on to the railing of the highest vantage point that tourists and guests were allowed. He didn't think it would be smart to take her to the tip-top, considering what she was wearing. There was no one around, and he appreciated the privacy.

Marinette stared across the horizon of the city. She didn't realize she needed this and was grateful to be dragged along. Adrien must have gotten the news about the Kwamis around the same time as she and Ayla did. He must have been trying to clear his head, until he found her. She felt a twinge of guilt for getting in his way, and causing more stress on him. There was nothing she could do about it now. He must have wanted some type of company, as he dragged her along.

She moved along the railing, staring out into the twinkling lights that she called her home. "I love this city." She said, more to herself.

"I do to." He answered. She turned toward him. He was staring out the horizon as well, a small smile on his lips. A kind of melancholy look in his eyes. He must have a lot on his mind.

"I'm sorry." She said again.

"I told you already, you have nothing to apologize for."

"But you must have been out on patrols. And here you are catering to me."

"Actually, I was heading here." _Gott'em_. She thought to herself. Adrien may not admit it, but he needed to talk to someone.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I, well, I guess I'm losing a friend too."

"What do you mean?" He spun around and slid down the railing, until he was sitting on the floor. Marinette didn't hesitate and joined him. "Let's just say, I'll be going away for a while." He admitted.

"Oh." She didn't know what to say. She hadn't expected him to just come out with it.

"Yeah. I honestly don't want to go, but it's out of my hands."  
"I'm sorry. You'll be deeply missed." Chat turned to the girl next to him. She looked at him with her deep blue eyes, obvious disappointed and more sadness, swimming in them.

"I didn't bring you here to make you sad, sorry."

"No, don't be. I'm glad that you feel you can share this with me." He gave her a weak smile.

"If it was just me, I'm sure it wouldn't be so bad, but, and this is top secret, you can't tell anyone," he continued when she gave him a nod. "but Ladybug will be going away too."

"Oh." Marinette put her best acting skills to the test. Thinking about Tikki having to leave again, brought the tears back quickly. She chocked them back. "I'm sure you guys will be back." She wanted to hear Chat say, "Of course." Even if he didn't really think they would. She needed his insane optimism right now, more than she cared to admit. But she felt something break when he said, "I honestly don't know." She let out a sniff. Chat turned his head quickly. _Crap._ He got her crying again. "Hey, hey. Don't, don't do that." He said trying to comfort her again.

"Why?" she said wiping her eyes again. "Why do you have to go?"

"It's out of my hands." He said lamely.

"It's not fair. Paris needs you. Needs Ladybug. Right?" He didn't know how to answer her. He wanted to scream out loud a resounding yes, but according to what he learned, it was a solid no. Paris no longer needed Ladybug and Chat Noir. He turned his head away from her, unable to look at her tear stained face.

"Chat." She said his name quietly. "I'll miss you." She meant. She was going to miss her partner deeply. She was going to look back fondly on the times they had spent together. While she knew who he was under the mask, it wasn't the same. The relationship they had built as Ladybug and Chat Noir, was different from her relationship with Adrien. Hell, it was even different when she was Marinette.

She stared up into his green eyes, as he stared back at her. "I – I've grown to know you so much. I – I don't know why you must leave, but just know that I've," she let out a deep breath, "cherished everything you've done for me. Thank you, for always being there. And I'm sorry." He tiled his head in that cat like manner, which she couldn't help but smile at.

"What do you have to be sorry for?"

"I'm sorry that you're going through this." She said simply. But in reality, she was sorry that he may never find out that she was Ladybug. She was sorry for the wasted time. She was sorry for not finding out sooner who he really was.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later. You follow the Ladyblog right?"

"My friend, Ayla, would never let me live it down if I didn't." he smiled at her.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir had been around for thousands of years. It only makes sense that they would be different people. So, it only makes sense that it wasn't meant to be forever."

"I guess you're right." It didn't mean that she had to like it. "It feels like you and Ladybug just got here, though."

"Funny, I feel that way too." They stayed in silence. Marinette thinking about all the adventures her and Chat had over the past year. Adrien thinking along the same lines.

"I remember this time when you and Ladybug were trapped by that Owl guy." Marinette said breaking the silence.

"I remember that. Man, he gave us a run for our money."

"I was so worried that you guys were going to lose, that it was going to be the end of Ladybug and you."

"Ladybug's quick-wit got us out of that one." He couldn't keep the pride out of his voice. "I'll tell you another secret."

"Hmm." She said curious as to what he was keeping from her.  
"We had to reveal our true forms during that fight." Marinette feigned shock.

"So, you know who Ladybug really is?"

"No," he said with his usually disappointment. "We kept our eyes close. Couldn't abandoned My Lady's trust after all."

"What a gentleman." He smiled, missing the slight sarcasm she gave off.

"We had a lot of close calls like that. I guess, the best thing I could say is, at least I got one kiss out of it." He smiled to himself.

"But weren't you under the spell of someone akumatized?"

"A kiss is a kiss." He said simply. Marinette giggled despite herself. "I would have really liked the chance to have known who she really was."

"You really love her, huh?"

"She means everything to me. From the moment I saw her, I knew." He turned to stare at Marinette, if he couldn't say it to Ladybug, at least he could say it to someone. "She's the one." Marinette's face turned red and Adrien could only imagine what his face must have looked like.

"You could, you know, always find her." _What am I saying?_

"I wouldn't even know where to start. I feel like I know her, really know her, but when I think about it, the only thing I truly know about her, is that she lives in Paris." He chuckled ironically.

"Now, I know that's not true." He stared at the girl, slightly confused.

"For instance," She thought back to before she discovered Chat's secret identity. "I don't know your secret identity, and I know that you are a good person. I know that you want to help people. And I know that you are a hard worker." She looked over at him. "Don't sell yourself short. You know Ladybug, probably better than she knows herself. She trusts you to take care of her when things get hard." She smiled at him then. A real smile, it felt like she had been crying forever, so having her face split in the smile felt nice.

"So, you think, I'll be able to find her?" Marinette could only hope, but she nodded anyway. He smiled, widely.

Marinette stood and looked out to the horizon again. Paris may not need Ladybug and Chat Noir, but it was obvious that they still needed each other. She was going to have to find a way for Adrien to find her. To find His Lady. Just has she had found him. She hadn't even realized that she need this black cat in her life, but she did. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, Chat Noir was part of Adrien, and that meant, she was in love with Chat too.

Just thinking it caused her heart to skip a beat. She was in love with Chat Noir. Great. How was she supposed to act as Ladybug now? Marinette in love was a clumsy, awkward mess, in front of Adrien. There was no way she could act like that in front of Chat. Not that it really mattered anyway. The thought nearly made tears rush to the surface.

"Talking with you, it's made me feel better." He smiled at her again, and he heart rate sped up, and butterflies danced in her stomach.

"M-m-metoo" she said quickly. _Breathe girl!_ She let out a deep breath. The wind picked up then, and Marinette shivered.

"I should probably get you home." He said noticing the goosebumps rising on her skin. He wrapped his arms around her to carry her back to her roof top. He felt her tense in his arms. "Everything okay?" Her face was red, and she was avoiding eye contact. "Princess?" he waited until her blue eyes turned to his face. "You okay?" She nodded stiffly. "Well, could you put your arms around my neck? I don't want you to fall." He watched her swallow, and slowly wrapped her arms around his neck. It brought her face closer to his. He noticed the little freckles dotted across her cheeks, and how long her eyelashes were. Her cute button nose, and how soft her lips looked. The last thought left his head, and he had to shake himself to clear it away. Ladybug was the only one for him. He knew this, so why was he thinking about the softness of Marinette's lips?

Marinette buried her head into his chest. He was staring at her lips, she saw his eyes look down at her lips. Guys only do that when they think about kissing, right? Her head was swimming with the thought of kissing Adrien. She could feel her face getting hotter. Her cheeks felt as if they might melt off her face.

Adrien landed on Marinette's roof. She slipped out of his arms, and took a step back from him, looking down at the ground. She needed to say something, but her tongue felt like sandpaper in her mouth. "I know I kind of kidnapped you." Chat's voice pulled her gaze from the ground. He was rubbing the back of his neck, looking away from her as well. "But, thank you. I didn't realize that I needed someone to talk to." She smiled.

"Same. I thought I could handle my feelings on my own, but I'm glad you found me." He smiled back, he turned ready to jump off the roof, but Marinette's voice caused him to look back. "Chat." She had grabbed a hold of his hand. "I," she looked away, gathering her thoughts, "I hope I get a chance to see you, the real you, again." He smiled, nearly laughing. She was going to see him as soon as she walked into her room.

"You will, Princess." He planted a kiss on her forehead. "I'm closer than you think." He gave her a wink and vaulted off the roof. Marinette's hand wondered to the spot on her forehead he had kissed, as she watched him go.

"You better come find me, Kitty." She said into the night.

She walked along the streets. They were so familiar to her. Going to school here. Meeting him. The work they accomplished together. But his quest for more, had been the driving force that split them apart. She didn't want that. He knew it, but he was blinded. He had always been blinded. She thought leaving would snap him out of it. Well it did something. He had certainly snapped.

She walked up to the iron gate that housed the former manner that she once called home. This "house" had never been a true home. She was sure it was still cold and metal like. This was no place to raise a child. Her child. The pain in her chest had yet to leave, she didn't think it ever would. She almost welcomed it. She deserved it. She left. She left her little boy in the hands of that power-hungry monster. But she couldn't allow him to have the power she kept with her. She had another duty. She almost had another child she needed to protect. She had only hoped it wasn't too late to fix things. She wanted to fix things, but first, she needed to see and old friend. She turned her back to the manner and walked the familiar path to the old acupuncture clinic.

A/N: OMG Who is this mysterious woman? What is she planing? If you haven't figured out who she might be, which I think I made it pretty obvious (intentional), then you'll just have to wait to find out! Keep reading. It gets good, I promise! Again, let me know if you would like to Beta Read the story. And I'll see you guys next week! LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH~!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Queen Bee landed on the roof of the acupuncture clinic. She was miserable, and got very little sleep the night before. When Pollen told her what she had to do, why she had to leave, she was heartbroken. Pollen was the closest thing she had to a real friend. Pollen accepted her, not because she was rich and her father was powerful, but she saw the girl who longed for her mother to come back, longed for true companionship, and wanted nothing more than to be liked by everyone.

Chloe appeared and Pollen reappeared from her Miraculous stone, the comb that Chloe had carried around for nearly a year. Pollen's bug blue eyes looked up that the misunderstood girl and nuzzled her cheek. "It will be alright, Chloe."

"How can you say that, when I'm never going to see you again? I kind of got used to having you around." Pollen giggled.

"You have more friends than you think."

"If you're talking about Sabrina, yeah, I guess she's a good friend. But, she's no you."

"I'm talking about the team."

"But, I don't know anyone on the team. Not their real identities anyway."

"If you seek them out, you will find them. Trust me." Chloe looked into the little Kwami's eyes.

"I always do." She smiled.

"Good, you are the first one here." Master Fu's voice nearly startled the two. Pollen floated up to the master, nuzzling his cheek as well. "Good to see you, Pollen." He petted her head and pulled out a small biscuit. Pollen's eyes widen in delight and happily stared munching on the tasty treat. Master Fu then turned his wise eyes on to the young girl. "Thank you for taking such good care of her." he smiled. Chloe held back a snotty retort. As much as she didn't want her friend to go, she had learned more about being a kinder person. She wasn't about to let Pollen think she had reverted to her old self.

"Thank you for allowing me to." She said simply. Master Fu's eyes widened a little from her remark. He turned to Pollen who was giving him a smug look. He chuckled and turned back to the blonde in front of him.

"You've grown much over this year. However, the balance has been restored." Chloe nearly let the tears fall, as she realized that this was goodbye. She pulled the comb from her hair, rubbing it affectionally. She recalled when she first caught sight of it. She had held it out from herself, with two fingers, and had called it tacky. Now, she found the beauty in it. She stared up at the mystical being in front of her. Her bright yellow fur, and large bluish-purple eyes. Pollen floated over to her, and placed a chaste kiss on the girl's nose. Pollen vanished into the Miraculous stone. Chloe heard her speak, just like she had the first time she held the comb.

"I'll never forget you, Chloe." And the dame burst. Chloe let the tears fall down her face, not bothering to clear them away, even though her make-up was running. She needed this. She need the release. She slowly walked towards Master Fu and handed the comb to him. He gave her a great look of sympathy as she walked past him, down the stairs the lead to the roof. If the others were going have reactions like this. He had a long day ahead of him.

Chole didn't look back. She couldn't. She had to keep moving forward. She watched as her mother walked away, she would be strong for Pollen too. She thought back to what Pollen had said about the team. As she walked down the street she made a vow to find them. She knew they would instantly click. They had to. Working together for so long, it was only logical. Chole took out her compress mirror and cleared away the running make-up and tears from her face. She had a new mission now. She could grieve when everyone was together again. As she put the mirror away, she didn't notice the boy with headphones walking past towards the shop.

Nino and Adrien thought it was best to go separately. Master Fu did not know that they knew their secret identities and walking in together, would have given that all away. Nino was trying to keep the smile on his face. He was listening to some up-beat music, trying to tap along to the beat, but nothing seemed to be working. He stared down at his bracelet. Wayzz and him had grown close. Maybe not as close as Adrien and Plagg, but he had grown accustomed to the little guy. Wayzz didn't like loud music, and he sure did like to meditate a lot, but Nino respected his wise little friend. They had fond memories to look back on, and he would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy being a superhero.

Nino opened the door to the clinic. He spotted Master Fu, preparing tea. "Hey, Master Fu."

"Ah, Nino." At the sound of Master Fu's voice, Wayzz flew out of Nino's cargo pocket. "Wayzz!" Master Fu's voice was filled with delight.

"It's great to see you too, Master Fu." Nino couldn't help but smile as Kwami and former wielder met again. "We got your summons."

"Yes, Queen Bee was here, not too long ago." He held up the comb, placing it into the box that housed all the Miraculous stones. Nino saw the pin that Hawkmoth used to have and gave an involuntary shudder. "Do not worry. Nooroo is now sleeping peacefully." Master Fu closed the lid to the box. "You two have made quite a team." He said turning back to Nino and Wayzz.

"He's a great little, dude." Nino said with pride. "It's been a blast."

"Yes, being Carapace has always been one 'shell' of a time." Master Fu said chuckling. Wayzz shook his head, while Nino let out a pity chuckle.

"It's been real, dude." Nino said to Wayzz. Wayzz bowed to him.

"It has been quite enjoyable." Wayzz nuzzled Nino for a second, before vanishing into the bracelet. Nino slid the Miraculous stone off his wrist and handed it over to Master Fu. Nino took a deep breath as Master Fu placed it in the box with the others.

"You have done well." Nino bit his lip, swallowed hard, and bowed to the wise man.

"Thank you so much." He rushed out of the clinic before Master Fu could response.

Once outside, Nino quickly ducked into an ally way. He made sure he was truly alone, before sliding down along the wall behind some trashcans. He put on his headphones and allowed the songs he wanted to listen to all day, play. Each one talking about heartbreak, and losing a loved one. He let the tears fall, quietly. He knew he had to get back to school soon, but he just needed a moment. He needed just one little space of time, just to grieve.

Ayla passed by the ally way that Nino was sitting in. Unaware of her boyfriend's emotions. She had her own to deal with. Twice, last night she had nearly let everything get the better of her. Twice, she had nearly let the situation turn her into a pile of goop. But she held it together. She bottled everything away. She was not going to do this. She was not going to let Trixx see her upset. It was not going to happen. She was going to let the fox Kwami see her with a smile on her face. It was the least she could do.

Ayla stepped up to the door of the clinic. She wanted to knock, she had her fist in the air, just waiting. "You gonna go in, or are you gonna just stare at the door?" Trixx flew out of Ayla's bag and opened the door for the girl.

"Trixx!" Ayla rushed inside, closing the door quickly behind her. "That was reckless, what if someone saw you?"  
"It's not like I care." Trixx said, pouting. She floated a head of the red head. Trixx was upset, and did not have any problem showing her wielder just how annoyed she was. Ayla hadn't once cried. She hadn't once acted like she was going to miss her. After everything they've been through. All the battles they had fought together. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that Trixx was stuck being the one broken hearted, while Ayla didn't seem to care.

Ayla followed behind the little fox. She knew when Trixx was having a mood. She couldn't understand why, out of all the times in the world, she was throwing a temper tantrum now. Ayla huffed and moved in front of the floating Kwami, halting her progress towards their last moments. "Well, I do. I do care. I don't want someone seeing you. It could mean disaster for everyone."

"You have a funny way of showing you care." Ayla looked at the fox, confused.

"What are you talking about, of course I care."

"You haven't once acted like it." She accused, turning her purple eyes to her soon to be former wielder. "Ever since we found out this was going to happen, you acted disappointed, but you didn't act like how I expected. I mean, ugh!" She let out a groan of frustration. "I don't get used a lot, okay? And I, like, really clicked with you. I don't know. I just was expecting some form of emotion, y'know? Some crying, some sad looks, something! But you're over here looking like you don't care at all!" The little fox hadn't realized that she had been moving around, floating around Ayla's head till she looked and found her standing behind her now. Golden eyes wide with shock. She sunk a little in, floating just below Ayla's line of sight. Her hazel gaze never left Trixx's.

"You, you thought that I was," she paused trying to find the words. "okay with all of this?" She bit her lip, trying to hold back tears. "I'm not okay. I've been miserable since I heard the news. Ever since I was a little girl, all I ever wanted was to be a superhero. To help those in need. When Mari – no – when Ladybug brought you to me, I was ecstatic. I couldn't contain myself! I mean, you remember." At the memory, Trixx couldn't help but smile. Ayla was a bundle of energy. The first time they transformed together, she knew she was going to like her. She just never realized how much. "You've become such an outstanding presence in my life, Trixx. I'm heartbroken about being separated from you." Ayla's voice cracked. Trixx looked up at the girl, tears were in her eyes. "I – I don't know what I'm going to do without you, but I was trying so hard. So hard to hold on, to not let you see me cry, because." A tear rolled down her cheek and her face broke. She nearly collapsed in on herself. Ayla warped her arms around herself, trying to feel something other than the overwhelming sadness pulling at her. "Because, I wanted you to see a smile before you left. I didn't want to be like this when you had to say goodbye." Ayla felt the nuzzle from the Kwami on her cheek. Trixx whispering to her. When Ayla looked up Trixx's had tears rolling down her fox face. Ayla wiped one away with her pinky.

"It's going to be okay. You're going to do amazing things! I don't know if we will ever see one another again, but the time I've spent with you, has been some of my most cherished memories." Trixx rubbed a paw on Ayla's cheek, wiping at the tear stains. "We'll always have our memories together. Don't ever forget that."

"I, uh, hope I'm not interrupting." Master Fu's voice pulled the two apart. Trixx smiled at him and then back at Ayla.

"Not at all, Master. Just saying a fond farewell." Master Fu bowed to the fox.

"Ayla, I know this is difficult, and I wouldn't put you through this if I didn't have to. But the Miraculous are too precious. I," he turned to the box that housed the Miraculous Stones. "I can't take the chance that something like this would happen again." Ayla, though slightly offended, understood, and nodded in response. She turned to Trixx, who bowed to Master Fu, and turned to the girl before her. She smiled, and gave the girl a wink.

"I mean it, you're going to do wonderful things, Ayla." She bowed to her former wielder, and vanished into the Miraculous Stone around Ayla's neck. When the Kwami was gone, Ayla took off the neckless and handed it to Master Fu. She didn't bow, she didn't look up at him. She simple thanked him, and slowly walked out of the clinic.

She broke down. She clung to herself, and started sobbing all over again. She didn't care about the people walking by. She didn't care about the looks she was receiving. She just held onto herself until she couldn't cry anymore. As her sobs turned to sniffs and gasps, she turned and started walking towards school.

"Ayla?" Nino's voice startled her. She slowly turned her head towards the ally-way that heard her voice. Nino's figure was standing inside, she could see the outline of his hat, he always wore and his headphones around his neck. "Ayla, baby, what's wrong? Wh-what are you doing out here?" What would she tell him? The truth would be insane. Would he even believe her?

He stepped out of the shadows, she could see the remains of tears that had streaked down his own face. He's been crying too. "I could ask you the same question. Are you okay?" She said wiping at her face. He didn't answer. He just looked down, so unsure of himself. Ayla had only seen him like this a few times. "Nino?" she reached up to put a hand on his arm. He pulled her to his body, and held on tight. She wrapped her arms around him, enjoying the feel of him. She needed this, more than she realized.

"I lost someone today." He whispered. She could sympathize with him, she understood how he felt. A thought passed through her head momentarily, but it was gone as he held on tighter.

"Someone we both know?" He shook his head in the negative along her shoulder.

"I lost someone too." He squeezed her tighter. "We'll be okay, though. We have their memories." He nodded his head.

"I love you, Ayla."

"I love you too, Nino." She kissed his cheek, wet with fresh tears. She could ask questions later. But right now, they needed each other.

Marinette watched as Ayla came in to the classroom with Nino. She really didn't know what to say to her. As Ayla took her seat, Marinette reached for her hand. She gave her friend a reassuring squeeze and Ayla returned it back. She gave the red-head a weak smile, and Ayla returned it. She gazed down at Nino, who looked just as messed up as Ayla. To the room around them, it looked like they had a fight. Good, maybe people would leave them alone. Seemed like they needed the space. Marinette couldn't understand why Nino looked so upset, however. Maybe it was something that boyfriends did when their partners felt upset. Some kind of couple thing she couldn't relate to.

Adrien couldn't think of a good way to comfort his friend. He patted his back, like bros do when they are upset, but he wanted to try to fix the problem. Maybe he could talk to Master Fu when he went to… he couldn't finish the thought. The thought of giving Plagg back, it hurt too much. His eyes went up to Ayla, who looked just as upset as Nino. It was going to be a long day. Adrien looked over at the girl next to Ayla. She was staring at her friend, obviously upset at her friend's pain. Her gaze slide over to Adrien's. He smiled at her, and she blushed, but smiled back.

"Alright everyone, take your seats, we are starting." Their teacher said, as she set her notebook down on her desk. Adrien faced forward to prepare for his lesson, but the curling feeling in his stomach, left him distracted throughout the multiple subjects. As time dragged on, by the time lunch rolled around, he felt like he was about to lose his mind. That or whatever remained in his stomach.

"Dude. Do you want me to go with you?" Nino asked, noticing his friend's paling face.

"You can't, if Master Fu sees you, he'll know, we know."

"Dude, I don't honestly care anymore. It's not like it matters anyway." Adrien did not have an argument for that. So, he allowed his friend to come with him. More like allowed his friend to drag him to the clinic.

"I don't know if I can do this." He said staring at the door. Nino place a hand on his shoulder.

"When all is said and done, I'll be right here for you." Adrien hadn't seen Nino so serious before. He took a deep breath and slowly opened the door.

The inside of the clinic always smelt like incense. The beads that lined the doorways instead of walls, always felt strange to him. He took another deep breath, and the smell calmed his nerves. Sure, he was leaving his best friend behind, but there was nothing more he could do. If he held on to the Stone, he would only be considered more like his father. That was the last thing he wanted, that, and giving up Plagg.

"Adrien." Master Fu's voice called from one of the door ways. Adrien parted the beads and found Master Fu sitting in the lotus position, eyes closed, with the Miraculous Box in front of him. The box was opened, reviling the broach, the comb, the bracelet, and the neckless. One was still missing, but Adrien was focused on the small box, the one that housed his ring. Instinctively he touched the metal on his finger. "You have done so well." Master Fu opened his eyes. They were swimming with sympathy, but also of great understanding and wisdom.

"I – I, can I be honest with you?" Adrien gripped his bag in his hands.

"Always." The old man said smiling.

"I – I don't want to give up Plagg." At the sound of his name, the black cat flew out of the Adrien's bag. He looked over at Adrien, before turning his green gaze to the master. Adrien petting the top of his head, and Plagg let out a little purr. "We've grown so accustomed to one another. I, I don't know who I would be today, if it wasn't for him and the Miraculous. He means a lot to me."

"Aw, shucks. You're going to make me blush, Adrien." Plagg teased. Adrien couldn't help but laugh.

"The friendship you have with Plagg, is one that few of the Miraculous wielders were able to have." Master Fu said. "However, Plagg and the others have to go into hibernation. It is necessary. We cannot allow another individual to try to obtain these powers. It is for the safety of all, Adrien."

"I understand that," and he did, it just did mean he had to like it. "I just don't know how to say goodbye." Adrien turned his own green gaze to Plagg. Plagg's ears were down in dejection. His floating form hovering in a slumped over position.

"I will give you a moment." Master Fu said, standing and walking into another door way, leading to a back room.

"Okay, he's gone." Plagg said, suddenly forming a straighter poster. He floated into Adrien's face "C'mon I'll transform you and we can go off. Just you and me." He meant it. The excitement was there in his eyes. He actually thought about this.

"Plagg…"

"C'mon kid! For once in your life do something for yourself."

"Plagg, you know we can't." Adrien turned his gaze from his friend. As tempting as the offer was, Adrien couldn't do that. He couldn't abandon everything and just run away. He knew what keeping Plagg meant.

"I know." Adrien's eyes shot up to Plagg's. He had that smirk on his face, the one that he used when he teased Adrien about being in love with Ladybug. "I know you, you'd never do something like that. I just thought, well, you looked so down." Plagg's voice drifted off.

"Plagg. You're the best Kwami anyone could ask for." Plagg's eyes widened. Him. The best. This kid was something else. All his life he was the unlucky one. The Yin to Tikki's Yang. And here this kid was talk about him being the best. God, he was gonna miss this boy.

"Adrien, we've had some great times together, huh?"

"Yeah."  
"All that camembert." He said dreaming about his favorite cheese. Adrien laughed. "I think I'll miss that most of all."

"Hey!"

"Just kidding." He landed on Adrien's head. Adrien scooped him up and watched as Plagg curled in his hand. "I refuse to believe that this is the last time I'll see you. So, you better not think it too!"

"Okay, buddy." Adrien said, trying to hold back the tears.

"None of that!" Plagg said, tears forming in his own eyes. "Don't you dare! I want a real Adrien smile for when I have to go to sleep." Adrien couldn't help the chortle that escaped him.

"Only the best, and realest, for my best pal." Adrien said giving him the biggest smile he could muster.

"That's my boy. This isn't goodbye, more like a see ya later." Adrien nodded, unable to speak around the lump forming in his mouth. "Well, see ya later!" Plagg said with a smile as he vanished into the ring. Adrien clenched his fist in his hand, pulling it close to his chest, as tears rolled down his face.

"See ya later, buddy." He dropped to his knees, unable to keep his weight up any longer. The tears continued to fall, but he didn't cry out, like he wanted to. He just felt. He remembered the first time he met Plagg. The first time he met Ladybug. All the bickering that he and Plagg had about his cheese. Picking the newest members to join. He remembered transforming for the first and last time.

A hand rested on his shoulder, nearly startling him. "Adrien." Master Fu, held out his own hand towards the boy. Adrien looked the hand in front of him, then down to his clenched fists. The ring, was black and green, like it usually was when he transformed. He could feel Plagg's heat radiating off of it. He removed it from his finger, placing it gently in Master Fu's. This was it. He watched the master put the ring into the box that had housed it when he first got it. Watched, as that box went into a compartment in the larger one. Plagg was officially in hibernation. Adrien, was just Adrien again. "You've come so far on your journey." Adrien nodded but didn't move from his position. "I am sorry, Adrien, but you know this is the right thing to do." Adrien sighed, and wiped the tears from his face.

"It doesn't mean it's easy."

"The right path, rarely is." He smiled at the young man.

"Thank you, for everything, Master Fu." Adrien bowed to the man and walked quietly out the door.

Nino was there in seconds, and Adrien hadn't realized how much his presence was a relief. "You okay, dude?" Adrien couldn't help the chuckle that shook through his chest.

"Plagg had refused to say goodbye. Told me that it was a 'See ya later' type of deal." He shook his head. Nino laughed a little too.

"Plagg's a stubborn one."

"You can say that again." Another couple of laughs escaped them. They both felt lighter. While the pain of losing their Miraculous Stones was still on the forefront of their minds, being together seemed to make the pain a little less sharp. He could only hope that someone would be there for his Lady, when she had to give her stone up too.

Nino and Adrien walked down the street towards the school building. They were unaware of the girl following behind them. She wasn't too surprised by what she had uncovered. However, finding out that Adrien had visited Master Fu's clinic as well, intrigued her. There were only two boys on the team, so one had to be Chat and the other had to be Carapace. Chloe hid behind a sign, advertising lunch items, when they suddenly turned.

Marinette and Ayla were walking up on the two boys. She watched as they chatted for a bit, but they went their separate ways. The boys, back towards the school and the girls, were heading for her. She dived into an ally before she could get spotted. Ayla and Marinette walked right by her. Curious as to where they were going, she watched their movements. Her eyes widened as they stopped in front of Master Fu's clinic.

There's no way. There's just no way. This is impossible. Marinette and Ayla were on the Miraculous team?! I got along with them?! This is ridiculous. Maybe she's just there for a treatment or something. That would make more sense.

Chloe snuck back over to the clinic. She tried peeking into some of the windows, but with the blinds all down, it was difficult to see anything. "Chloe?" Ayla's voice stopped the blonde in her tracks. She slowly turned around, as the red-head was giving her a curious look. "What are you doing?"

"I – uh – I dropped something back here. I was looking for it." She lied quickly, realizing it wasn't her best work, but might do in a pinch.

"You lost something, through the window?" Ayla raised an eye-brown, like the Rena Rouge always did. "Girl," she shook her head.

"Can you pull your hair up?"

"Excuse me?"

"It's a simple question. Can you pull your hair up? Like in a long pony tail?" Chloe swished around her own pony tail, as if giving a demonstration.

"I don't normally put my hair up." Ayla said, feeling slightly uncomfortable. "Besides, I don't have anything to tie it up with."

"Fine." Chloe took out her hair-tie and handed it over to Ayla. "There you go." Ayla looked at the girl, like she had lost her mind. And perhaps she had, but she needed to know. She need to know who else was on the team. It was supposed to bring her comfort. And she needed that comfort.

When Ayla didn't take the hair-tie from her out stretched hand. Chloe's initial reaction was to stomp her feet, or hold her down and tie the damn hair up herself. But she thought of Pollen, and what she would have had her do. Instead, she took a deep, calming breath, and let out it slowly. "Can you, please, tie your hair up for me?"

Ayla's eyes widened even further than she thought possible. Chloe Bourgeois, just said, "Please". She thought for sure that hell must be freezing over. She looked down at the hair-tie. "You don't have lice, do you?"

"Pa-lease. My gorgeous locks would never be trained by those nasty things." Taking in the fact that Chloe was rich and probably able to afford luxury shampoos, she took the hair-tie from her, and tried to put her mess of a mane into a pony tail. The feeling of her hair being put up, reminded her fondly of transforming into Rena. Chloe watched on bated breath as Ayla put her red-hair up. She tried to picture her with fox ears, and an orange masks. As Ayla finished, Chloe's blue eyes grew almost too large for her head.

"Uh, are you okay?"

"Rena Rouge." Ayla's own eyes matched that of Chloe's. "So that means, Marinette is…"

"Don't you dare!" Ayla yelled. She ripped off the hair-tie and threw it at the blonde. "You don't dare speak a word of this to anyone. Or I will find you." She threatened.

"You've got it all wrong." Chloe grabbed hold of Ayla's wrist before she could turn away. "Please, you've got to listen to me."

"I don't have to listen to a thing you say."

"You will, once I tell you!" she hollered back. "Ayla, please. I –" Her voice broke. She felt to her knees, nearly dragging Ayla down too. "I need you. I need Ladybug. I need the team. Please."

Ayla looked at her again as if she had lost her mind. What was going on with this girl? Was she having mommy issues again? Ayla just couldn't understand the sudden desperation coming from her.

"Ayla, Rena. I'm Queen Bee." Chloe turned her tear stained face up to the girl. "Please, I can't be alone. Please."

As if the world couldn't give her anymore surprises. She looked down at the girl before her. Long forgotten was the Chloe who wouldn't be caught dead in the middle of an alleyway, on her knees, ruining her designer jeans. Ayla knelt by her. She was still crying. Still holding on to Ayla's wrist. She hesitated at first, but then gently stroked Chloe's hair. So soft. She was going to have to get some condition tips from her, but that would have to wait. "C'mon," she said still petting Chloe's head. "let's get a seat and wait for Marinette. We'll talk. Sound good?" Chloe's tear stained face looked back up at Ayla, she nodded unable to speak. Ayla hoisted her up and walked with her to a nearby seating area. Marinette was in for another shock of her life.

This was it. The moment she had been dreading. The moment where she had to give up the mask, the powers, and the friends she had built through the past year. The moment that signified the beginning of the end. She looked over at the floating creature next to her. Not long ago she thought it was some type of hallucination that had conjured the being before her. She couldn't help but giggle at how she reacted when she first saw Tikki. What had she called her? A bug-mouse? She shook her head to herself. Her reaction left something to be admired.

Tikki looked over at the smiling Marinette. She was glad that she was smiling, obviously remembering something she though fond of. Hopefully it was a memory of their time together, and not of Adrien. She turned her blue eyes back to the beaded doorway. She knew the moment she floated forward, the stone would call. It was already calling, but the incense on the other side would be strong. Master Fu knew what he was doing. These were burned to aid with sleep, and mixture of sandalwood and jasmine. Tikki took a deep breath and parted the curtain with her paw, the same time as Marinette. It had only been a year, but they were so in sync with one another. Yes, Tikki had decided that Marinette was going to be one of her top wielders. Sure, she was young and slightly immature when it came to everyday life, but her passion for being Ladybug was always true. She was always able to shine brightest when defending another.

Master Fu waited for the final two to appear before him. He stood by the Miraculous box with his hands behind his back. He was comfortable. He was happy to see Marinette was smiling, but knew that it would not last long. The bond that every Ladybug had made with Tikki was always the strongest. These were the individuals who would stop at nothing to protect the innocent, and Marinette was no exception to that. Meaning the dynamic between the two was going to be difficult. "Marinette, I'm glad you got the message."

The young girl did not say a word. She looked down at the box in front of her. Everyone's Miraculous in place, including Chat Noir. At the bottom of the box, an open space, where an obvious Miraculous was missing. She turned to look over at Master Fu. "Any chance I'll be sent after the missing one?" she asked a little hopeful. Master Fu's eyes lowered to the ground.

"No. I'm afraid, not. The wielder of the Peacock Miraculous has been missing for years. Even Wayzz is unable to track her."

"I see." Her own face turned down. This must be the reason he wanted to bring all the Miraculous together, for protection. Marinette had already figured it was for something important, but this only solidified the situation. She truly was giving up her powers. Giving up Tikki. She turned her attention to the floating Kwami. Tikki was examining the box, taking in the detail of each Miraculous Stone. When she got to the center, she stared down at the ring that housed Plagg. It was black and green now, much like how it would be if Chat Noir was wearing it. She placed a little paw on the side of the ring. Still warm. She turned her eyes up to Marinette then. The teenager was staring down at the ring, tears brimming her eyes. Tikki floated up to the girl, her blue eyes followed the Kwami's movements.

"He wasn't here too long ago." The Kwami whispered. "It's still warm." Marinette nodded, but didn't say anything. She couldn't speak. Too afraid of what might happen if she physically heard the thoughts running through her head. They were screaming at her to grab Tikki and run to Timbuctoo. But she knew better.

Ignoring the voices in her head, she cleared her throat and tried to suck back in the tears. She managed for a minute. "I – I honestly don't know what to say."

"For once, I'm at a loss for words too." Tikki giggled.

"Why are goodbyes so awkward?"

"Probably because you don't want it to be a goodbye. Goodbye means that you'll probably never see that person again. While saying something along the lines of 'Later' or 'Call me' tend to feel as if communication will always be there."

"But that's not the case here, is it?" Tikki shook her large red head.

"I do not believe so. But I do know this, you, Marinette, are an extraordinary girl. You have a fire in you that I only see with a handful of those chosen to wield this power. You, are going to help people, remember that. You've grown so much in the year we have been working together. And though, Ladybug is gone, you are not. And you, Marinette, you are miraculous. You and your black cat." Tikki gave the girl an encouraging smile.

Marinette rubbed the tears that were falling freely down her face. Tikki was always like that. Always supporting her. Always being there to push her to be the best person she could be. She could do this for Tikki. She would do this for Tikki. Remembering her time as Ladybug will be something she would cherish until the day she died. And yes, her and her black cat, they would always be together. She knew this to be true now. While Adrien didn't know it yet, she needed to find a way to tell him that she was Ladybug. They would be able to move forward from there. Whether as friends, or as something more, she knew they would always be together.

"Even now, Tikki, you are still trying to give me love advice." Marinette giggled. "I'm going to miss you so much."

"I'll always be with you, just remember everything we've been through, and I'll always be right there."

"I promise Tikki. I love you."

"I love you too, Marinette." The Kwami floated up to here and kissed her cheek, before vanishing into the earrings. Marinette did not transform, but she felt Tikki's presence radiating inside of the earrings. She took each one off slowly, enjoying the warmth the Kwami was emanating. She clutched them in her hand, one last time, as a final goodbye, before handing them over to Master Fu. Tears continued to flow down her face. She didn't bother to wipe them away, she didn't want her eyes to be red and swollen when she walked back to Ayla.

"You've grown so much from your time as Ladybug, Marinette. Tikki is right, you will go on to still care for people. It is in your nature." Master Fu placed the earrings inside the box that Marinette had first received. He put the smaller box inside of the larger one, just as he had done for Chat Noir's. "While I will be unable to wake the Kwami's from their hibernation," he paced over to a nearby shelf. "Maybe, a different good luck charm will make you feel a little better?" He held up a keychain that had the shell of a ladybug attached to the giant loop. He placed it in her hands, and gave her a small bag. She looked at the bag, confused.

"What is this for?" Master Fu smiled one of his, I-am-not-going-to-give-away-the-surprise, smiles and Marinette knew better than to try to push. She bowed, a tear falling from her eyes to the carpet below. "Thank you, Guardian." Marinette voice shook, but she held her bow, until Master Fu returned it. She walked away, holding the bag and ladybug keychain in her hands.

As she left the clinic, Marinette spotted Ayla at a café across the street. Memories of trying to keep Tikki hidden from her best friend came rushing to the forefront of her mind. The crazy things Tikki would do to keep their secret. Like the time she was picked up by Chloe had pretended to be a stuffed toy. Or the time she pretended to be a cellphone clip. Fond memories, which made the tears fall faster. Marinette could take it anymore. She ran towards her friend, throwing her arms around the girl. Ayla caught her easily, as Marinette sobbed her eyes out. Ayla comforted her rubbing her hair, telling her she knew her pain. That she understood. To let it all out. And she did, every memory, every emotion, every giggle and laugh, every piece of advice given. She let the memories flood her. She let it all out on Ayla's shirt.

Marinette's sobs started to slow, turning into hiccups and short breaths. She realized that her hand was hurting and looked down to find the keychain digging into her skin. She couldn't help the small smile that played on her lips.

"You feel a little better?" Ayla said, pushing some water her way. She prayed that the wait-staff who dropped it off didn't witness her display for too long. She took a grateful sip.

"Thanks." She mumbled. "I guess." She looked down again at the keychain. The paper bag was now sitting on the table, she reached for it, but it was snatched away from her.

"What did he give you?" Marinette's hadn't realized that Ayla was not alone. Chloe was sitting at the table they were preoccupying. How long had she been there? Did she witness everything? Does she know everything? Marinette's panic was starting to show.

"Calm down girl." Ayla said, placing a hand on the panicking girl's shoulder. "She's all good. Promise." Marinette turned to her best friend, look as if she had grown large twirled horns out the side of her head.

"Oh!" Chloe squealed turning their attention back to the blonde. "There's one for each of us." She held up a keychain from the brown bag she had snatched away from Marinette. Instead of a Ladybug, this one had a bubble bee decoration. Marinette blinked in confusion, while Chloe slid the bag over to Ayla. Marinette watched as she dug through the small bag and held up a keychain with a fox face.

"They are cute!" Ayla said.

"Did I miss something?"

"Duh." Chloe said, spinning her keychain around her finger. "I thought for sure my pick would give me away." She stopped the rotation of the keychain and held it up for Marinette to see again, but the girl couldn't process what she was seeing. She looked back and forth between the girl and the keychain. She wanted what her head was telling her to not be the truth. That the friendship and comradery that she had built with the team did not include the one person she had been at odds with for the longest time. She then turned to Ayla, who only nodded at her.

"You've got to be kidding me." Chloe looked slightly taken aback by Marinette's comment. Sure, they hadn't gotten along as Chloe and Marinette, but as Ladybug and Queen Bee they had built up a friendship. Maybe it was only as the superheroes. Maybe what she thought of earlier was only the hope of a child. "You've been Queen Bee this entire time? Ayla, how did you not figure this out?"

It was Ayla's turn to feel some form of shock. "How was I supposed to know? It's not like she acted like she does when she was Queen Bee."

"Alright, I get it. I'm a horrible human being." Chloe stood up quickly from her seat. "I should have known. I thought, I had hoped, that after everything we had been through together, you would at least accept me. That you would look past this stupid façade I put on to deal with the world, and see me. See Queen Bee." She grabbed her purse and stared to walk away, "My mistake."

"Chloe!" Marinette's voice halted her. She turned her piercing eyes on the girl. Marinette, the girl that everyone liked. Marinette, the girl that was too naive to know better. Marinette, the nice one. Marinette, the hero of Paris that no one knew about, except for a select few. "Please, don't go." She pulled out the chair that Chloe had vacated seconds ago. "C'mon, sit. Let's talk." When Chloe didn't move, Marinette tried to change tactics. "Or, you know, it is kind of crowed here. We can, I don't know, go to my place? Get some free food? Talk there?" she held out her hand for the blonde to take.

Marinette felt like she was coxing a frightened animal, and in a way, she was. She tried to remember all the interactions she and Queen Bee had. They did work great together; Queen Bee was always polite and willing to lend a hand. She was always eager to impress. Sometimes it landed her in hot water, but she always counted on the team to help her when needed. Could she really blame her for thinking that she was trying to impersonate a hero again? Chloe was anything but negotiable. She would always want to be the leader, always wanted to be in charge. Queen Bee wasn't like that, she accepted her role on the team, quickly and without argument. Of course, team disagreements happened every now and then, but it was always Queen Bee who would bring them back to the main issue.

"C'mon." she tried again when Chloe still didn't move. The blonde turned around suddenly and walked back to the table. She ignored Marinette's out stretched hand, instead crossing her arms, and pouted slightly.

"I'm only going because you said, 'free food'." Ayla laughed and Marinette let out her own giggle.

"Alright, if we are going let's go. I have some stuff to tell you two anyway. I might have figured out who Chat Noir and Carapace are too." She smiled wickedly, but not in a cruel way. Marinette looked over at Ayla, who in turned shrugged.

"Uh, Chloe?" Marinette said to her retreating form.

"One, my house is the other way, and two, we have to get back to school."

"The lunch period ended a half hour ago." She said, inspecting her nails.

"Oh. My. God. Chloe did you skip the entire day?" Ayla said in shock.

"I was in emotional distress. I needed a mental health day. Daddy will take care of it with the principle." She waved off Ayla's outrage.

"I think we all need a mental health day." Marinette said.

"Great. So, you guys can skip the rest of the day with me, and we'll head over to the hotel. We can talk there, and get free food too." Chloe started to walk away again. Marinette turned to Ayla.

"Might as well, it's not like we haven't done something like this before."

"Yes, but that usually involved an akuma attack. There are no more akumas. Besides, my grades have suffered enough." But she would give up school, and pursuing any type of education if it meant she could be Ladybug again.

"And what's one more day? C'mon, free food." Ayla sang-song and followed the blonde. Marinette sighed, but went followed as well. Her parents were going to ground her for another week, but at least it would be the last time. Besides, a mental health day, didn't sound so bad.

A/N: This chapter had me messed up. OMG. I had to stop several times, just to pull myself together again. I hope you guys are not too mad at me for pulling this cliché out, (and breaking a few hearts) but I thought it was important when it came to the events coming up. What else can I say? To be fair, this is the first time I've written anything like this. I figured that the Miraculous Stones would not stay with them forever. I only mean this because, as much as I would love to see a 26-year-old Marinette running around in an updated Ladybug suite, it does not seem necessary. Master Fu only allowed the Miraculous to go to these new heroes because Hawkmoth had surfaced, and there is still so much we don't know about how he even got his stone in the first place. But that's an origin story for another day.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"Chat Noir is Adrien!" Chloe shouted. The girls had gathered in Chloe's grand room in the hotel. She was kneeling on the bed, staring at the two girls in front of her. She had figured it out. While she couldn't say for certain if Carapace was Nino, although the possibility was likely, she knew for sure that Adrien had to be Chat Noir. She'd know the boy for far too long, not to be able to tell. Plus, the day's spying had been successful. There could have only been one reason that Adrien would go to that particular clinic and look as distraught has he had. She knew it. Deep down, she always knew, today just solidified it.

As she looked at the two girls, she expected to see shock. She expected to see Marinette freak out. She expected to watch Ayla's eyes dance with excitement at the potential of a new scoop. She expected something. But all she got was, blank expressions and Marinette shifting from side to side.

"We, uh, we knew." Ayla said at last. "Marinette figured it out after we defeated Hawkmoth." She looked over at her friend, who was shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"What?" the blonde moved from her bed. Ayla stood a little straighter. "What do you mean, 'after we defeated Hawkmoth'?"

"Chat called Gabriel, after he was transformed, 'Father'." Marinette explained.

"Crap, and I thought I had the scoop before either of you! I didn't even hear him say it." She sat on her bed again, huffing.

"Marinette only heard him because she was standing right next to him. The rest of us were tying down his little gang of evil doers, remember?" Ayla sat down next to the girl.

"How could I forget? Can you believe he was able to find people to give nearly the opposite powers to for each of us? That Killer Bee girl was someone I would not want to tangle with again."

"You're telling me. White Moth was no better." Marinette joined the two on the bed.

"And Volpina again." Ayla said. All three girls cringed, before laughing together.

If an outsider walked into this room right now, they would have Marinette and Ayla had lost their minds. They were laughing, getting along, and enjoying each other's company. Chloe was still acting like her shallow self, but the two girls would just roll their eyes and brush off her posh attitude rather than get mad about it.

"Wait! Wait!" Ayla laughed. "You can't be serious. Chat Blanc was not cute." Marinette blush slightly.

"Oh, he so was. I mean, that fact that he turned out to be Luka, was a bonus. I would even say he's in the same league with my Adrikins." Chloe flicked her bangs.

"I don't know, what do you think, Marinette?"

"Huh?" The blush was still staining her cheeks. "Well, I mean, Adrien is well… Adrien and Luka is well…"

"Just spit it out. Who do you think it cuter?" Chloe gave the girl one of her signature eyebrow raises.

"Uh, well…. I guess… Adrien?"

"Great. Another person to compete with."

"Chloe, I think you've already lost this fight." Ayla gave the blonde a sly look.

"Huh?"

"Think about it. Adrien is in love with Ladybug. And who is Ladybug?" Both girls turned their heads to Marinette. The girl in question was beet red and trying to hide her face behind a throw pillow from Chloe's bed.

"He doesn't even know who I am yet."

"We can fix that. Just go tell him." Chloe inspected her nails.

"I can't just walk up to him and be all 'Hey Adrien, guess what? I figured out your secret. Now, I'll just share mine with you. Ta da! I'm Ladybug!' besides he wouldn't believe me anyway. I would need a way to prove it."

"You've got the keychain." Ayla pointed to the brown paper bag near Chloe's bedroom door.

"Yeah, but. I want Adrien to find me. I don't want to deliver myself to him. I need to know that he's going to like me for being Marinette, not Ladybug."

"I can respect that." Marinette and Ayla turned to the blonde, manicuring her nails. "What? The last thing I would want is a guy to see me as Queen Bee. I would want him to look past that."

"You mean how Ayla and I are starting to look past your rough exterior?"

"Exactly." She said without pause. Marinette turned to Ayla who just shrugged.

"So, here's the plan," she put her nail file down and looked to both girls. "I give him the keychain."

"What?" Ayla said at the same time Marinette said, "Why?" Chloe rolled her eyes.

"It's simple. I let him know about my little spying, tell him I'm Queen Bee and that Ladybug," She pointed to Marinette "sends her regards, handing him the keychain. Its proof that I am who I say I am, and leaves him hanging because he'll want more details about you."

"Why can't Ayla do that?" Marinette asked, pointing to her best friend.

"Too obvious. He'd figure it out in a heartbeat."

"Don't we want that?" Ayla gave the blonde a tired look.

"We can't make it easy on him. Where's the fun in that?"

"Who said anything about this being fun? This isn't some game, Chloe. We are talking about two people's destinies."

"Well, I wouldn't say 'destinies'." Marinette mumbled.

"Destinies!" Ayla shouted. Marinette and Chloe held up their hands in a defensive posture, hoping the red-head would calm some. "Sorry. It's just. UGH! This is so frustrating, and it sounds like you're going to make it more complicated."

"Not complicated." Chloe explained, "Just worthwhile. Listen, if he figures it out too soon, it may be too much for Adrien to handle. He's at a very weird place right now."

"Funny, I thought the same thing. With his father being in jail and all." Marinette said, a little shocked by Chloe's concern.

"Exactly. Marinette gets it."

"I don't know. Seems like we are being sneaking about this." Ayla protested.

"No, Chloe's right, which is something I thought I would never say,"

"Hey!"

"Sorry, but anyway, Adrien is in a strange place right now. I don't want to confuse him further. No, it's better if he finds me. If I go up to him and tell him I'm Ladybug, I will never know if he loves me for me, or if he loves me for being Ladybug."

"What's the difference? You're still Ladybug!" Ayla gripped the pillow in her lap, trying not to scream at her best friend.

"Adrien has this romanticized version of Ladybug. If I don't meet those expectations, he'll just be disappointed." As she said it, she knew she was right. Adrien had idolized Ladybug, threw her up on a pedestal for all the world to see. Marinette never saw herself as special, and Ladybug was no different. While she was Ladybug, she saw it as a protector. She never wanted the fame or the glory, she just wanted to help people. Chat had always raised her up to be more. It was nice, but it was also a little uncomfortable.

"So, we agree? I give Adrien the keychain, you get to keep play as if you don't know he's Chat, and Ayla and I get to figure out the mystery of our other superhero friend." Chloe tossed back her ponytail in triumph.

"You mean Carapace?" Ayla said with a raised eyebrow. "Do we really need him?"

"Like it or not, he's still part of the team." Marinette said with a smile.

"An annoying part."

"He isn't all that bad. You should try actually talking to him." Chloe said.

"He's so frivolous. He never seems to take our job seriously."

"He did always have the best plans." Marinette said.

"Always knew just what to say." Chloe said

"Seemed to really connect with everyone, except…" they both turned to the auburn-haired girl. Ayla looked between both of them a little surprised and defensive.

"You can't blame me." Marinette sighed.

"I don't see why you two just couldn't get along."

"He never listened to any of my ideas. He never once said, 'He great plan' when I came up with something. Never once, did he seem to take me seriously." Both girls blinked at Ayla's sudden outrage. Marinette knew she took the superhero gig very seriously and contributed a lot to the team. But to know that her friend wanted everyone's approval, was kind of shocking. "I just wanted him to acknowledge me, that's all." She blushed at her sudden outburst. She hadn't meant to say all of that, but once everything was out in the open she wanted to keep going. Her mouth started running before her brain said go.

"Ayla." Marinette didn't know how to comfort her best friend.

"It's stupid, right?"

"No!" Marinette cried out at the same time Chloe did, with a sound of disinterest, yet, still wanting to show Ayla that she was wrong. Chloe's odd tone confused Marinette for a minute before she turned back to her best friend. Chloe spoke before she got a chance.

"I mean, I get it. All I wanted was for Ladybug to acknowledge me." She turned to look at Marinette, who stared back. Chloe shook her head and Marinette didn't know if it was to clear her mind, or if she was saying no. "But anyway, we can't worry about that right now. I mean it's not like we are going to be teaming up again. We're just going to be friends, hanging out, shopping, doing my hair and nails, doing my homework. All that fun stuff."

Both girls looked at each other. "Uh, Chloe you have had a real friend before, right?" Marinette asked.

"Of course. What do you think Sabrina is?"

"Sabrina might say she's your friend, but you don't really treat her like a friend. You treat her more like servant."

"But everyone is a servant. Not my Adrikins, though. He's too beautiful to be with common folk. Oh, no offense." Both girls gave the blonde an irritated, yet blank stare. "I said no offense."

"Uh, offense has been taken!" Ayla said slamming her hand down onto the throw pillow in her lap. Marinette knew the irritated girl was trying to prevent herself from launching at Chloe.

"Look how we acted as a team. That was more along the lines of a friendship. Maybe you could start looking at Sabrina the same way?"

"We'll see." She said picking up her nail file again. The other girls let out exasperated noises before giving up on their losing battle.

"So," Ayla started, "What's the plan here for the keychains?" Chole stopped filing her nails and gave a sinister toothy grin.

"Oh, don't worry. I have a plan." Marrientte's eyes widened and she felt her stomach drop. _This can't be good_.

Adrien threw his bag into the corner and fell back onto his bed. He half expected Plagg to glide out of the bag and complain about mishandling him, but as quickly as the image came to mind, so did the final good-bye. He curled into himself wanting to cry, but the tears wouldn't come. He was exhausted, mentally and physically. Between his father being in jail, his mother still missing, and now the only other family he had left was gone, he had never felt so empty inside.

"Adrien?" Nathalie's voice came through the door. Adrien sighed but responded. She opened the door and joined him at his bed, keeping at a distance. She was worried for him, it was obvious, but she also didn't know how to handle the situation. She promised to always be there for Gabriel and that meant that she needed to be there for Adrien too. She signed internally. She was so not getting paid enough to handle all of this. "Is there something particular you wanted for dinner tonight? I can speak with the chef, make sure that whatever you want is on the menu." She really didn't know what else to do beyond that. She had to attend the bail hearing for Gabriel in the morning, make sure his attorney was competent enough in criminal law that he would know what he needed to do.

"I'm not really feeling very hungry right now. I just came back to grab a few things before heading over to Nino's." he said while moving from his bed. She nodded and moved to walk out of his room. "Thanks, Nathalie. For everything." She paused at the sound of his voice. He shouldn't be thanking her. This was her job after all, but if she had been a bit stronger, more resilient, more there for his father, he might not have got caught by Ladybug and her Miraculous gang. She had failed Gabriel and in turn, she had failed Adrien too. She had to fix this. She had to find a way to make this okay and back to normal. If only Emilie had not disappeared. She quickly pushed that thought away. She could not blame her friend forever. But the thoughts were harder to push away when she had to watch Adrien fall further into himself and Gabriel become obsessed with getting her back. Still, she smiled at him, and nodded, before leaving the room.

Adrien reached for some more clothes that he had forgotten and shoved them into his bag. His eyes felt puffy and his heart felt heavy, but he didn't know what else to do, other than go back to Nino's. He wanted to talk to his friend, maybe it is true what they say, misery does love company. Knowing that Nino was probably experiencing the same he was, did lift him up a little bit more.

He lifted his bag with the fire article of clothing and some games that he thought Nino might like to play when the got there and left his room. He waved good-bye to his former bodyguard before walking out the door.

"There you are. I was getting worried you weren't going to come out." Nino was waiting for him by the gates, and Adrien couldn't help the small smirk that appeared on his lips.

"You can't get rid of me that easily." Nino mirrored his smirk.

"You okay?" Nino asked as the gate closed behind the boys. Adrien was about to give his typical 'I'm fine' smile and answer, but realized, there was no point. He smiled sadly instead and shook his head. Nino frowned. "I get it. I'm not holdin' on to go either, dude."

"I got some games?" Adrien said trying to lift both of their spirts. "Might help?" Nino nodded, but didn't look enthused with the idea.

They continued to walk towards the bakery. Marientte's family bakery. The smell of fresh cooked bread and pastries filled the air. Adrien couldn't help by sniff. It smelled wonderful. "Some pastries might help." He pointed out the shop. Nino followed the direction of Adrien's raised hand. Another small smile appearing. He looked over at him.

"Now that's an idea." Adrien gave him a small smirk, and the walked into the shop. Marinette's dad was manning the counter, while her mother was in the back shuffling around.

"Hey boys!" he said in his gruff voice. "What can I get you two?"

"A macaroon please, the blue one." Nino said.

"I'll take a green one" Adrien said, he started to pull out his wallet, but Tom brushed him off.

"On the house."

"You know Mr. Dupain, you'll never make a good business if you keep giving these out for free." Nino said, taking the macaroon.

"Don't you worry about that. Marinette's friends always get the good stuff." He winked at the boys, who smiled in thanks. Adrien took his own macaroon and found a seat in the small café.

"So, what do you want to do when we get back?" Nino asked.

"I figured the games would make us feel a little better, but…" his voice drifted off as he thought about how Plagg used to try to correct his actions while playing. "I don't know."

"I feel you there. Maybe, you wanna talk about it?"

"Not here. There's too many – Chole?" He was cut off as he saw the familiar head of blonde hair come down the stairs where the owners lived.

"Adriekins!" She called and rushed over to him wrapping her arms around his neck. "How are you?"

"Uh, I'm fine." He removed the girl from around him. "What are you doing? And up there?"

"Oh, don't worry about that, Adrien. I was just talking." Adrien gave a look to Nino, who just shrugged.

"Well, I guess I'm happy for you then. Glad to see you're making some new friends."

"Oh, you have no idea. By the way," she burrowed through her the small purse on her side. "here, these are for you two." She pressed a small object into each of their hands. "If you want an explanation, call me later. We'll talk then. Gotta run! Bye Adrikins." She gave him two quick pecks on his cheeks before turning and leaving the store.

"What was that all about?" Nino said. Adrien looked down at the small object in his palm and his breath caught. It was the head of a plastic black cat on a key chain. It's emerald eyes nearly glowing, and its pupils in slants. He turned to Nino quickly, only to see the same look on his friend's face, one of shock, awe, and confusion all at once. Nino lifted the chain to show the end had a plastic turtle's shell. He looked at Nino's face again.

"You don't think?"

"There's only one way to find out, dude." Nino said. The both quickly ate their macaroons and left the bakery, thanking Tom again on the way out. Both were so busy with their own thoughts; they didn't notice Marinette and Ayla sitting on the steps watching them. Ayla smirked at her friend.

"Well, you got what you wanted. You know he's gonna come and find you now. Who knew her plan would work though? The chances of him walking in here were rare at best." Marinette blushed and looked out the door that Adrien had just walked out of.

"Maybe." _Or maybe, it was fate._

She had no idea that the acupuncture shop was open so late. It felt like she had been waiting for hours. It was well pass midnight, and the sign still read "Open". She sighed but toughened it out. It was perfect. She needed the others. Master Fu would not just let her take them, especially because she had been gone for so long, but it was now or never. She donned her disguise and walked over to the shop.

Master Fu was finally cleaning up for the night. His last client had run very late, but he was waiting for his unexpected arrival. He could sense her. Now that Wayzz was back with him. Her knew she was close and was just sitting in waiting. He pulled out the tea set and started making some nice jasmine tea to calm him down. He heard the bell chime above the door. Steps followed and he smiled, waiting to see her.

She pulled her hood down. She should have expected this. He always knew when one was near. Trying to sneak up on him would never work. She bowed instead. "Master" she said trying to sound unemotional.

"Emilie." He said. "It has been too long." She looked up at him, trying to hide her emotions. He sat at his table with a small smile on his face, never turning his eyes from her. "You've grown. Please, have a seat. Do you want some tea?" She sighed and moved to sit down. "Still with sugar?" he said pouring the tea. She nodded. He smiled again.

"Master. I came here with a purpose."

"I know." He took a sip of his own tea.

"Then you know what I will ask of you?"

"Yes, but you know what I will say." She clinched her fist under the table.

"I have to do this."

"For what purpose? That is what I'm most curious about. What could you possibly need the power of every miraculous for?" He took another sip. "I am the guardian that has been chosen to watch over them" She stared across the table at the old man. "I cannot allow you to take them."

"Then you leave me no choice." She stood up quickly, knocking the table over. Tea spilled and Master Fu scrambled to his feet. He moved quickly to secure the box. Emilie moved faster, quickly transforming herself and pulling a peacock feather from her fan. She flung it at Master Fu, who stopped all movement the moment it absorbed into his shirt. She smirked and fanned herself. "You don't want to be a guardian, anymore do you?" Master Fu grimaced, trying to fight of the magic from her peacock feather. "Don't try to deny it. I can read you so clearly now. You feel that it is your fault. Well, it kind of is, isn't? If it weren't for you, Hawkmoth wouldn't have run rampant, and the peacock miraculous wouldn't have… well." She cut herself off. Too painful to think about. "I wouldn't have disappeared."

"Em…ilie." He breathed out.

"Don't talk. It's okay. Just give me what I want, and I'll be on my way." She looked over at the box. "Give it to me." She ordered. His body started to move, shake it at first, but firmly. He reached for the box. His hands twitched, trying to resist. "It will just hurt more if you resist."

"You… don't have to… do this."

"I told you before, you've given me no choice. Now, bring it to me." His body started to move again. His fingers twitching and locking, his body fighting the entire time. He reached her, and she took the box gracefully. "Thank you." The control snapped quickly, and she fell to the ground with him. Emilie held her head, as the transformation started to fade, before it was too late, Master Fu crawled towards the fallen box. He pushed on it, and 5 lights dispersed from it. Emilie saw Master Fu by the box, and quickly grabbed it before he could reach. She ran out of the shop and into the night.

"Emilie" Master Fu called out before falling to the ground, unconscious.

A/N: I'm so sorry for the extreme delay. I have been super busy with other things going on, and this chapter took me forever. I must have re-written it about 5 or 6 times, and really, i'm still not satisfied with it. Hopefully you guys like it. There is more to come and I can't wait for you guys to read more.

Hope you enjoy it, and I'll update when I can.

Love you all!

~Hollipop~


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"Chloe, you're not making a lot of sense here." Adrien said for what felt like the 20th time during his and Chloe's conversation.

"Just what is not making any sense? I'm Queen Bee, you're partner. And I know who you are Nino are because when I had to give away my best friend, I stuck around Master Fu's place." Her nasally voice sounded over the speaker.

"Sounds like something you would do." Nino commented under his breath.

"I heard that!" She howled. Nino twitched slightly at being caught.

"I'm just trying to wrap my head around all this." He set his phone down on the desk in Nino's room. They had called her the moment they walked into the bedroom, throwing the phone onto speaker even while it was ringing. Chloe had told them all about her identity and how she was a member of the Miraculous team. Adrien was still trying to process it. How was it that Chloe was Queen Bee? It just didn't seem possible. "Queen Bee was the –

"The levelheaded one. The one who wanted to be nothing more than apart of the team. The one who always encouraged others to contribute to plans. Yes, I know, so unlike me." Chloe interrupted him. "I blame that more on Pollen, than on anything. She was one who wanted me to try to act more like a team player than anything." Adrien could practically hear her flip her hair at her comment. Nino grinned at Adrien. Adrien rolled his eyes.

"Alright, so you know who we are, and I'm convinced you were part of the team. So, does that mean, you know who ladybug and Rena Rouge are?" Adrien smirked.

"So what if I do?" Adrien's eyes widened in shock. Nino mirrored his look.

"Do you really?" Adrien practically screamed into the phone. "You have to tell me!" Adrien was nearly begging.

"I'm not saying a word. I was asked not to." Adrien's knees nearly buckled. Chloe's voice was filled with regret, but she was firm. Didn't matter if Adrien promised her the world. She wasn't going to tell him. Especially because Queen Bee was like that. Loyal, always loyal. Now, he knew for sure. Chloe really was Queen Bee. He smirked and let out a humorous laugh. "I'll tell you this," she paused as Adrien leaned in closer towards the speaker. "She wants you to find her."

At that moment, two bright lights flew in from the open window. They swirled around the room before disappearing towards the nightstand. Nino looked over at Adrien, confused and amazed. "Did you see that?" Adrien nodded, unsure what to make of it.

"What are you two –" Chloe's voice cut off for a moment, "Did, did a light just appear to you guys too? Cause, if not, I might want to go get some type of therapy, preferably shopping."

Nino reached for the objects on the nightstand, the two key chains that Chloe had given them earlier. "Dude…" he held up the cat key chain. It's green eyes, literally glowing a bright green. Adrien reached for it, hesitant at first. "Careful." Nino said, it may be some form of an akuma or something. Adrien swallowed. They had been feeling strong emotions, but Hawkmoth, his father, was in jail. Still. He drew his hand closer to the cat. As he touched it, he didn't know what to expect, but he expected something. Nothing. The cat eyes dimmed, and that was it. Nino looked down at his own keychain and slight touched the glowing turtle shell. A faint green-yellowish light was emanating from the pattern of the shell, as his fingers brushed against it, the light faded.

"Are you guys still there, or have you been akumatized." Chole's voice said through the speaker.

"We're okay, that was just really weird though." Adrien said, rubbing his thumb over the cat's noise.

"Cut that out, it tickles." Adrien startled as he heard Plagg's voice ringing in his ears. He looked around for the little floating cat but didn't see anything.

"I must be losing too." He said looking down at the keychain again. "I'm hearing things." Nino patted his friend on the shoulder. Adrien turned to him and smiled. Nino gave him a toothy grin.

"I feel like I can almost hear him too." Nino said. "Don't worry, I'm sure its just the grief."

"I have to agree with turtle for brains." Chloe said. "I feel like I can almost hear Pollen too."

"Maybe we all need a little of that retail therapy." Adrien joked.

"I hear you!" Chloe said suddenly. "Sorry guys, I have to go. Father is calling me for something. Don't forget what I told you Adrien." He smiled at the phone.

"Don't worry, I haven't."

"Good. Ta-ta!' The phone went silent as she hung up.

"Your lady is waiting for you." Nino teased. Adrien threw a pillow at his friend's face.

"Shut up!" Adrien said a little embarrassed, but more ecstatic. Ladybug was waiting for him. She wanted him to find her. For the first time, in what felt like weeks, he was really smiling.

Marinette and Ayla stared at their glowing key chains. The red of the ladybug was glowing bright, while the orange of the fox face glowed a bright orange. Marinette looked over at Ayla, confusion and concern etched on her friend's face. "What do you think those lights were?"

"I haven't the foggiest idea." Ayla replied. She reached a tentative hand toward the glowing keychain.

"Be careful." Marinette said, as she watched her hand drift closer. As her fingertips brushed in fox face, the glow faded. "How are you feeling? Okay?"

"Yes. That was odd." She turned back to the fox keychain in her hand. Marinette brushed her own fingers along the ladybug keychain. The glow faded as well, but nothing happened. She wanted something to happen.

"Funny," Ayla laughed. "I can almost hear Trixx." She was rubbing the top of the fox's head. Marinette rubbed the line between the shell of the ladybug, where the wings would have been tucked in safely.

"Marinette" Tikki's voice sounded out around her.

"Yeah, I can almost here Tikki, too." A lone tear fell down her cheek. The girls smiled at one another. "You wanna get back to finding a movie for our sleepover?"  
"Yup!" Ayla gave her friend a thumbs up. "This was a great idea, by the way." her face fell a little. "I don't want to be alone, just yet, you know?"

"Yeah." Marinette started to make a bed out for the two of them, since both wouldn't be able to fit on her bed. Ayla had the idea of making a blanket fort in front of the TV and Marinette couldn't agree more. They had made a great fort, complete with at least 15 pillows and 4 comforters and a small string of lights. It looked comfy enough. Marinette was getting comfortable, while Ayla was looking for a movie when the lights appeared.

Ayla pulled out a horror movie, and Marinette shook her head violently. "Nothing scary! I don't think I'll be able to handle it."

"Well, I don't think a rom-com is a good idea either." Ayla said.

"Yeah, I've done enough crying for one day."

"How about a comedy than?"

"Sounds great." Marinette smiled while snuggling into her pillow. Ayla popped in the DVD and snuggled into her own pillow.

Darkness still clouded the outside of Paris. Marinette and Ayla were fast asleep in their blanket fort. A breeze was picking up outside. Inside, two keychains were glowing, pulsing, as if they had their own heart beats. They continued to shine brighter, and brighter with each pulse. Marinette turned in her sleep. Her eyes blinked open, annoyed from the light that continued to feed through her eyelids. She rubbed her eyes as she lifted her head, looking for the source of the pulsing light. She sleepily walked over to the keychains, not really realizing what they were. _My alarm?_ She placed her hand down without much thought. Energy coursed through her body, waking her right up. She recognized this power, this feeling. Now fully awake, her eyes widened. "Tikki?"

Meanwhile, on the other side of town. Nino and Adrien were trying to catch their own form of sleep. Adrien could hear Nino snoring in his own room through the walls. Sleep was not an option for him tonight. Not only was his nightly routine ingrained into his sleep patterns now, it was also because he was getting annoyed by his best friend. How could he have passed out so easily? Adrien felt like his mind was racing 300 miles a minute. He was still feeling the sting of Plagg being gone, but also pure joy at the thought of Ladybug waiting for him to find her. He couldn't believe it. She was waiting. She wanted him to find her. Now, he just had to think about where to start. Obviously, she had to be someone that Chloe knew, and respected. He was not naive to Chloe's feeling about him. She didn't really make it subtle either. He thought about some of the friends that Chloe hung out with but could only come up with Sabrina. There was no way Sabrina was Ladybug, he had fought against her when she was akumatized, with Ladybug, so that ruled her out.

He sighed as Nino's snore pulled him out of his thoughts. His mind was running in circles anyway. He rolled over towards the nightstand, trying to get comfortable. A green pulsing glow caught his eye. It was faint at first but became brighter as he looked as he concentrated on the spot. He sat up in the bed and pulled himself closer. The green light was nearly blinding as it continued to pulse. He reached out his hand, wondering if it would stop again if he touched it. Energy surged through him. His eyes snapped wide in surprise. He recognized it. The energy, the power. "Plagg!" he nearly screamed, gripping the cat keychain in his hand. "Plagg! Say something! Please!"

"Adrien?" Plagg's familiar voice reached Adrien's ears. Tears were forming at the corner of his eyes.

"Plagg! How? What?"

"I don't really have time to explain." His voice was fading.

"Plagg! Wait! What's wrong? Why do you sound so weak."

"I only have a small amount of my energy, my miraculous is somewhere else, and I'm not accustomed to this object yet, but listen, Adrien, something's happened. You need to get to Master Fu's."

"What happened?" Adrien gripped the keychain tighter. "Plagg?" The light was starting to fade.

"It was too soon. I knew that, but I needed to talk to you. I needed to tell you. Please, Adrien. Don't forget. Master Fu." And that was all Adrien could get out of his friend, before the light faded again.

"Plagg! Plagg! No!" Adrien's tears fell hard and fast. He couldn't lose his friend again. It was too much. "Please. Don't go." He whispered to the keychain. Its eyes flashed. The only signal Adrien got that Plagg was still in there. The tears that fell now, were one's of relief. He curled up in his bed, snuggling the keychain.

Marinette was mirroring Adrien's position in her own bed. Fear and relief coursing through her. Tikki was back but Master Fu was in danger. Every ounce of her being wanted to run to his clinic and see what was wrong but it was the middle of the night. There was no way for her to get across town. So, she snuggled up with her keychain and sighed in frustration and content, praying that dawn would be soon.

"Marinette." She groaned in her sleep. Ayla rolled her eyes. What kind of a host woke up after their guests? She laughed, as Marinette rolled in her sleep. "Marinette, wake up!" She pulled the covers from her friend's body. Marinette startled at having her comfort taken from her, but her awaken state was short lived. Her eye lids drooped as she ran her hand through her bed head.

"Ayla?" she yawned. "What time is it?"

"9 am. Get up, lazy." Ayla scolded, but was smiling. Marinette groaned, but obeyed. As the fog in her mind lifted, she suddenly remembered the keychain. She raced back to her sleeping spot in the make-shift fort and grabbed the keychain. Nothing happened. Tikki's voice wasn't ringing in her ears. No surge of power. It just felt like a small keychain. _Could it have been a dream?_ She thought to herself. It was possible, in her grief, she might have dreamed that Tikki had come back to her. "Hey", Ayla's voice had Marinette turn towards her. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Marinette wiped away a tear she hadn't realized was rolling down her face. "Just missing Tikki. I guess it hasn't really hit home yet."

"Well, c'mon, we can go do something to try to get our minds off it. I hear there's something happening in the park today." Ayla held up her smart phone for Marinette to look at. Marinette read the event posting. It was a concert of some form. Marinette smiled, although it didn't reach her eyes.

"Yeah, that sounds like fun." Ayla gave her a close eyed smile and Marinette tried to push all thoughts of Miraculouses and Tikki from her mind. Still, she tucked the small keychain into her purse that she used to carry Tikki in.

The girls got ready quickly and made their way downstairs to grab something quick to eat. Grabbing two pairs of croissants, they made their way towards the park. It was packed with people. Everywhere one looked, games, food stalls, and carnival rides were all set up to treat the citizens of Paris. It seemed that everyone was celebrating, as Chat Noir and Ladybug balloons filled stands and the hands of little ones. Marinette wanted to run and hide. This would be one celebration that Chat, and Ladybug would not be able to attend, and the citizens didn't know it yet. How would that be explained? Would the Mayor simply tell everyone that they went away to a different town? Or that they hadn't bothered to return their phone calls? It was too much stress for Marinette to think about. "Maybe the park, wasn't such a good idea." Ayla said, tapping a balloon with her alter on it. Marinette let out a sigh.

"Might as well make the best of it." She said smiling at her friend. She dragged Ayla over to a food stand selling cotton candy. From there the two went on several rides, brought more junk food, and watched a small performance, before the mayor and the chief of police went up on stage.

"Thank you, citizens of Paris!" the mayor said as he took center stage. "We are here to celebrate the capture of Hawk Moth," at the sound of the name, a chorus of boos rang out through the crowd. The mayor gestured for everyone to settle down again. "and the heroes who brought him to justice." The crowd erupted into cheers and applause. Marinette and Ayla looked at one another, concern on their faces. "However, the Ladybug and Chat Noir team could not be here today, due to other heroic matters." Ayla gave another concerned glance over to Marinette, whom returned the look. They both knew it was a lie, and that the team would not be returning to Paris, but it the Mayor would have to figure out how to tell the people. "But that does not mean we should not honor their braver and the heroism to our beloved city." Cheers roared again, and Marinette decided to turn her gaze away from the stage. She looked around at the smiling faces of the people in the crowd, the food vendors and people still looking to get onto rides. A shadow passed over her vision, and she looked up trying to see what had blocked out the sun for that split second. She saw a figure leaping from roof top to roof top. Her eyes widened in amazement. There was no way that some random teen was just leaping on roof tops. It had to be a new hero, or a villain.

She signaled to Ayla to break free of the crowd, when they finally did Ayla gave her a confused look saying,

"What's up?"

"There was someone leaping on the roof tops." She said scanning the buildings around them.

"What? Are you sure?" Ayla started looking around as well. Marinette spotted it first, a figure, too far away to see, but heading towards the heart of the city.

"I found them, c'mon. We'll follow them to see who they are."

"What? Why?"

"What if it's a new hero, or something?"

"Girl." Ayla started but Marinette took off without waiting for Ayla to finish her thoughts.

 _I couldn't be certain_. Marinette thought to herself as she followed the figure. _But I thought I saw, cat ears and the tail. I must know, was it him?_ She ran faster at the thought. The figure finally landed, on top of the hotel roof. Marinette ran forward, passing by the door man who happily opened the door for her, unlike the last few times she had come to visit. She pushed the elevator button, jogging in place.

"God girl, have you thought," Ayla said as she dragged in deep breathes, "about joining track and field?" She scrambled into the elevator as soon as the doors closed behind her. Marinette was still bouncing in place, as the elevator ascended to the top floor. Once the doors opened, she was rushing out the door towards the room that she saw the figure headed too. Chole's room. She opened the door tentatively, as she heard voices coming from the room.

"I have to find her." Her heart nearly stopped at the sound of his voice. She opened the door a little more and saw Chole standing in front of an open window.

"You still haven't answered my question." She moved to look to see who Chole was talking too, but she knew, still her heart skipped when she saw him, Adrien as Chat Noir. He was in his full costume, he had his miraculous, but how.

"I told you already," he told to Chole. "The keychains you gave to me and Nino. Something happened last night. I don't know what, but I have some of my kwami's powers. I don't really know how this happened; I just know that something bad happened. That's why I have to know who Ladybug is." Chat seemed desperate.

"That doesn't really give me an answer, do we all have our powers back, or just you two?"

"I don't know Chloe, but that's not the point. I don't know how long this will last, and I need to find her. Please." Chloe didn't say anything, and from where Marinette was hiding it was hard to see what kind of face she was making.

"This just isn't fair. Ugh! Look, I know you need to know who Ladybug is, but I'll let her know. To at least try it. See if something happens. You may be the only one who has their powers back." She said in a pissy voice.

"Chole, I don't have time to waste. Just tell me who she is."

"If I do that, then it would be all for nothing!" Chloe yelled and Marinette jumped. "I can't do that. I can't just blurt out her name and pretend that you discovered who she was. It wouldn't do any good. It wouldn't be fair to her!"

"Chole…" he seemed at a loss for words. "You must really admire her." Chloe let out a humph of annoyance, to which Chat chuckled. "Alright, I'll keep trying to figure out who she is, but until then, can you let her know ASAP. I know something is wrong, please."

"Sure, whatever." Chat chuckled again and leapt out of the window. Marinette opened the door fully and rushed forward. She wrapped her arms around the blonde girl. "What in the world?!" she cried out surprised by the sudden hug.

"You're so nice Chloe! I can't believe you did that for me."

"Yeah, that's so unlike you." Ayla said from somewhere behind.

"What-how? What in the world are you doing here?" Chole asked, bewildered.

"We were in the park," Ayla explained. "Marinette noticed someone on the roof tops, and we followed them here."

"You crazy girls." Chole said, still trying to pry Marinette from her person.

"That's what I said to her." Ayla pointed to the blue-haired teen, still wrapped around Chloe.

"I don't deserve you as a friend." Marinette said, as Chole tried to push her off.

"Yeah, yeah, that's great. Now get off me!" Marinette let go of Chole still overwhelmed by her words and kindness.  
"You could have told him, but you didn't, why?" Chloe looked mildly uncomfortable.

"Because, I – I'm not _that_ mean, okay!" Marinette looked a little shocked by her yelling but smiled all the same. "Besides, you need to check on that keychain you got from Master Fu." Marinette suddenly turned serious.

"You're right. Maybe you should check on yours too." She said looking to Ayla then Chloe. The both nodded. "If we do have our miraculous powers back, we need to meet at the usual spot."

"Right." They said at the same time.

Marinette pulled the keychain from her purse, smiling down at it, slightly apprehensive. She pushed her fears aside and spoke aloud. "Tikki, spots on." The familiar rush of power came at her like a shot of adrenaline. She could feel her costume magically appearing on her body, her limps moving the way they always do whenever she transformed. She stared at herself in the mirror. No longer was the plain girl, Marinette. Before her stood a shocked, yet confident, Ladybug. She felt her eyes start to burn with tears but pushed them back smiling at her own reflection. Ayla rushed up behind her squealing and hugging her.

"It worked! Girl, it worked!" Ayla squeezed her friend, not caring if she was crushing her ribs or not. Marinette laughed either way. Ayla pulled back abruptly. "Now, go get 'em." She told her best friend. Marinette's bright blue eyes shown with unshed tears as she smiled at Ayla. She turned to Chloe who rolled her eyes but gestured to the open window. Marinette took a running start, and threw her yo-yo, the breeze flew through her pigtails as she swung into the streets of Paris.

Meanwhile, her counterpart was also leaping and bounding his way through the streets. He enjoyed the feeling of the wind in his hair again, and the fast pace of that his staff was able to guide him. He only had one other thought on his mind, he told Chloe about regaining his powers in hopes that she would tell him about Ladybug's identity, but he should have known better. Now, he wanted to make sure that his Lady got the message, and there was only one other individual who knew Ladybug. He had to go see Marinette.

He leaped over the building across from the bakery. He scanned the open windows, seeing her mother and father coming in and out of view. As he scanned her bedroom window, however, he couldn't find her. Maybe she was out or just out of his view? It was hard to tell. He changed angles trying to peer into her bedroom and trying not to feel like a creep at the same time.

"She's probably not home." Plagg's voice was ringing in his ear. He sighed, he gave a small nod, trying to see if he was communicating properly with his friend. He didn't really know how to talk to him, but he thought talking to himself was pushing it. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll see her soon." Chat sighed and started to make his way back to Nino's. His phone suddenly started ringing. His stomach decided to do some flips as he reached around to his staff. He pulled out the attachment to his phone, Ladybug's picture lighting up the screen.

"MY LADY!" he practically screamed. She giggled. Oh how he missed her giggle.

"Long time, no see, kitty." He could hear the smile through his phone.

"Ah, it has only been a few days, and already I've fallen even deeper in love with you. I guess it is true what they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder." He paused waiting for her to say something sarcastic, as she always did, but it didn't come. He checked his phone to see if the connection was dropped, but it was still counting the seconds of their conversation. "My lady? Are you okay?"

"S-sorry, I just, just wasn't – what I mean to say is…" her voice trailed off. He raised and eyebrow to her odd behavior.

"Where are you?" He said scanning the rooftops for a possible glimpse.

"Iamoverbythepark" she spoke so quickly; he almost didn't get everything she said.

"Are you feeling okay, my lady?"

"Yes, yes, I'm fine. Totally fine. Sorry, I guess I'm just still a little frazzled and confused…" she trailed off again.

"Don't worry." He said with renewed confidence. "I'll come find you and then explain everything." She gave a small hum in understanding and he hung up the phone, head towards the park to meet up with his lady once again.

Marinette hung up her phone and was pacing back and forth behind a chimney. What was wrong with her? She was acting like she usually did in front of Adrien. Getting tongue tied and falling all over herself. She needed to get a grip. It wasn't like he knew about her, yet. But that was the key word, he would know. He would soon find out. That is what drove her anxious behavior. As much as she knew that it was necessary, it didn't mean that she wasn't still scared. What if he still rejected her? She had to push the thought from her mind. She had much more important things to worry about other than Adrien's feelings.

She heard the soft landing of her partner on the roof from the other side of the chimney. She took in a deep breath and revealed herself to him. She smiled sweetly as he stared at her. "Hi, kitty." Before she was done, Chat had ceased her by the wrist and pulled her towards him, wrapping his arms around her small frame. It was so sudden; she didn't have time to react. He stood there holding her, her arms at her side, as he squeezed her tightly to him.

"It is you." He whispered. She struggled a little out of his grasp.

"Of course, it is me." She smiled again at him, but her smile faltered at the sight of his face. "Chat?" Silent tears were running down his face. "What's wrong?" She was growing more concerned as more tears dripped down his chin and onto the roof tops below their feet.

Chat was shocked to say the least. He hadn't expected it. Tears were pooling in his eyes and while he tried to hold them back, they continued, until they leaked. His chest felt like it was on fire. He could breathe right. He gripped part of his suit to try to elevate some of the weight that settled there, but it was too much. He closed his eyes as tears pooled out some more. She was here. Really HERE! Standing right in front of him. He was holding every bone in his body back from leaping on to her and hold her in his arms to try to show his body that she was physically there.

A hand on his shoulder had his eyes snapping open to see her face so close. "Chat? Are you hurt?" He whipped away his eyes with his forearm. When he brought it down, he smiled, trying to convey all the admiration and affection he could for her in that simple gesture. Her blue bell eyes widened, and he saw a faint blush but couldn't tell if it was a reflection from her mask, or if she was really blushing.

"I'm sorry, my lady, no, I'm fine. I just…" he swallowed down his pride, "I just never thought I'd see you again." If possible, her eyes widened further.

"Chat." She squeezed his shoulder that she was still holding, before placing her hand on his face. He held her hand on his face with as much tenderness as he could muster. He really wanted to pull her close to him, breathe in her scent, and forget about everything else in his miserable life. His father, his mother, his entire situation. Just her and him. That's all he needed. Her voice pulled him out of his fantasy.

"As much as I would like to comfort you further, there is a reason we got our powers back." She gave a small smile which he returned. He wiped his eyes again with his forearm and shook his head.

"You're right." He reached behind him to grab his baton. "C'mon, we should probably go see Master Fu." He held out a hand to her, but she smiled coyly and pulled out her yo-yo.

"Right behind you, Kitty." She launched her yo-yo into the air as it attached to a nearby building. She yanked to make sure it was secured before free falling from the roof, the yo-yo directing her path to swing from roof top to roof top. Chat caught up to her easily, leading their way to Master Fu's clinic.

They landed on the rooftop across from the clinic, peering down at the clinic's entrance. "It looks fine." She peered over at Chat who was still looking at the front entrance. He eyes narrowed.

"Something does not smell right." He sniffed the air. "I don't like this, My Lady." She looked down at the entrance, then up to the roof of the clinic.

"Well, we can't barge in, in our costumes." Chat's eyes widened in surprise. "Relax, I have an idea." She pointed to the roof, and to the ventilation system.

They entered the building with some difficulty. Chat got stuck at one point, his baton acting more like a blockage than anything. "Give me a break, it's been awhile." He said as he fixed it. Ladybug rolled her eyes as she dropped into the main room. She peered around, but nothing seemed out of place. She slid the door open to the healing room, were the table was turned over, and glasses of tea were spilled on the floor. Master Fu's body was lying on the floor by the back door.

"Master Fu!" Ladybug rushed forward, careful not to touch him, in case his back was injured too. She quickly checked for a pulse and found a steady rhythm. She let out a sigh of relief. Chat followed him behind her whistling as he passed the wreckage.

"He threw some party last night." Ladybug scowled slightly at her partner. "Sorry, you know I make bad jokes during tense situations" he bent to kneel beside Master Fu.

"Just help me with him." Together they carefully flipped the frail man. He stirred slightly, before letting out a very loud snore. "Well, I think he's going to be okay." She turned back to flipped table and broken glasses. "But what happened?"

"I might have an idea." Ladybug turned her attention back to her partner. He was holding a bright blue feather. Her eyes widened while his narrowed. "Well, at least we have an idea of why we got our powers back." He flipped the feather in his hand deafly, as it twirled around, catching the light, making it reflect.

"But how? We got Hawkmoth… it doesn't make any sense." They both stared down at the snoring old man, wondering what to do next.

The decided to put the man to bed and would speak with him separately once he was conscious. Chat handed the feather to Ladybug and she put it into her compress, unsure what else to do with it.

"Wonder how long our power's last." Chat wondered aloud.

"Probably as long as before." Ladybug estimated.

"Well, what do we do now?" Ladybug thought it over, the logical thing was to head out and regroup with the others, see if they maybe had their powers, but she wanted to check on the feather too. However, she didn't really know what she needed to do with it. Like Hawkmoth's butterflies, the feathers would not just magically go back to their original owner. Most of the time, they would just float away.

"We should probably regroup with the others; give them the information we have for right now." She concluded.

"How do we find them?" She gave him a puzzled look before realizing that Adrien didn't know who the other wilders of the miraculous were.

"Uh… you know what, I've got it. I'll let the others know what we found. Maybe their kwamis returned too." Her earrings started to beep, along with Chat's ring. "Sounds like we are running out of time." She pulled out her yo-yo and turned back to her partner. "Later, kitty." She smiled before zooming off.

Chat watched her go, smiling to himself. She was back. His Lady was back and he couldn't believe it. He wanted nothing more than to keep her by his side, but obviously they were needed for yet another mission.

His ring let out another beep and he sighed. He took one last look around the clinic before pulling out his baton and heading back to Nino's. If Ladybug knew he was a wielder, he would have to steer clear. Ladybug wanted him to find out who she was on his own, not appear to where Nino was, only to stumble upon her identity. Wait. Did Nino know who Ladybug really was? He'd have to talk about that with his best friend later. Right now, there was another friend on his mind, that he wanted to see. He took a sharp turn from the direction of Nino's house to one of his favorite places.

He landed on the balcony of the bakery, knocking at the door located on the floor. The blue haired girl opened the latch, looking around curiously. "Princess." Chat bowed.

"Chat?" she said sounding surprised. "What are you doing here?" He looked up at her as she climbed the rest of the way out.

"Surprised to see me, I see. I just thought I'd drop by, let you know that your favorite superhero duo is back in town." He gave her a cocky grin, which he got a small laugh from. He was really, really starting to like that sound. When he was Adrien, she was shy and timid with him, but when he was Chat, she seemed to open a little more. Her smile and laugh were the same, however. That he liked a lot. Showed him that she was genuine and, in a world where he felt like a lot of it was fake, he liked that. "So, did you miss me?" She giggled.

"You have no idea." She teased. His ring beeped again. Marinette's blue eyes widened slightly. "Uh, sounds like you are running out of time there." He shrugged.

"Sad, but true. Just thought I'd let you know that Paris will be safe once again." He smiled brightly at her.

"I have no doubt about it." She smiled back. He winked, before grabbing her hand and giving the back of it a light kiss.

"Till we meet again." She blushed lightly, Adrien liking the color in her cheeks. She nodded as he leaped from the roof.

Marinette stared at the back of her hand, and then back to the place where she had last seen him. His cocky smile and flirtatious behavior. Adrien was not like that when he was out of costume, she kind of wanted to break open his shell, because she was starting to get used to the way behaved around her. Marinette could still feel the blush in her cheeks. She was only blushing because she knew that Chat was really Adrien. She was only blushing because Chat was Adrien. She was only blushing because Chat was Adrien. She continued the mantra in her head, as she walked back down to her room. Chloe and Ayla sitting in her room. Chloe on her bed, hanging her head off the edge her legs up against the wall and he blonde ponytail dragging on the floor. Ayla was sitting on the computer chair, legs spread and her elbows on her knees. Both girls were staring at their phones. When the blue-haired girl walked in Ayla popped off the chair and walked over to her. "You've made headlines already."

"What?" she grabbed her friend's phone, the screen showing a news article, headlined "Ladybug and Chat Noir Back in Paris! Are Citizens Safe?" She let out a large groan before handing the phone back to her friend.

"So, what happened?" Chloe said from her place on the bed. Marinette became serious in an instant.

"Master Fu was attacked."

"What?!" Chloe was off the bed and by Ayla's side, as both spoke at the same time.

"What happened?"

"Is he okay?"

"What about the Kawmis?"

"Girls, girls, one at a time, please." Marinette gave the girls a nervous laugh before continuing. She told them about the feather, about Master Fu being fine, but unconscious and that they were going to need to figure out who had the peacock kwami and what they were planning. All knew that the peacock was able to manipulate individuals just as Hawkmoth had done, but none knew how to stop it. There might have been one person, but he was currently in jail, and speaking to him would be difficult.

"Do the guys know?" Ayla said after Marinette explained everything.

"Well, Chat does, but I'm not sure how to tell Nino without Adrien finding out who I am. I shouldn't even know who he is now. Knowing each other's identity can be dangerous. And now that I know Adrien is Chat, my feelings may get in the way while we are trying to fight. Everything is too complicated."

"No! You do not get to do that!" Chloe said stomping her foot down. "You do not get to make that kind of decision for Adrien."

"People could get involved that don't need to be." Marinette argued.

"Oh yeah, like who?"

"My parents for one."

"Are you trying to tell me, that Adrien would blab to the entire city that you are Ladybug?" Chloe's face was bright red with furry. Adrien was a great guy, and Marinette was acting like he was not worth trusting.

"This has never been a question of trust. There is too much to risk for letting him know who I am again."

"Just admit it Dupain Cheng, you're scared that he's going to reject you. That you are not going to be what he wants and that is why you are reverting back to calling this a 'not trust issue'. News flash, your parents have been akumatized, attacked, and kidnapped before and that was when villains did not know your secret. You're just using it as an excuse to hide from your feelings, and I am not going to let Adrien get pushed to the side, while you try to figure that out." She stormed out of the room, slamming the door to her bedroom. Marinette stared at the door, along with Ayla.

"Well, that just happened." Ayla piped up at last.

"UGH! Chloe is just being Chloe. I know I'm right about this." Marinette slumped over to her bed and gripped a pillow to her chest.

"Okay, but let's just say, for arguments sake, you are wrong about this and you are just hiding." Ayla suggested.

"I'm trying to protect everyone. My family, my friends, Adrien himself. I don't understand how that is being selfish." Marinette clung to the pillow tighter.

"Because Adrien is a big boy. Because everyone can take care of themselves as well. And because majority of your friends are superheroes and would never say anything to anyone about this because then they would just be revealing their own powers."

Marinette had moved the pillow further up her body, covering her face, as Ayla continued to make her point. She was scared about Adrien's reaction, but she also wanted to protect everyone. If anyone found out she was Ladybug, it would just be chain reaction from there. Everyone's secret would be out, everyone's families would be in danger. She knew this but she also knew that if Adrien knew who she really was, their dynamic as a team would be compromised. He would treat her different, because that's what happened, when you opened yourself up to someone like that right? He already put himself in unnecessary danger when it came to her, but if he found out who she was, he would either be sorely disappointed, or highly overprotective. Either would not be a good outcome for her.

Ayla left after a while as well. Marinette finally alone with her own thoughts. There was too much going on and only a handful of voices she could listen to, but there was one voice she wanted to hear the most. As if her subconscious was reaching out her, she could almost hear Tikki's voice.

"Marinette."

"Oh, Tikki, I really miss you." Marinette rubbed her arms, staring out the window.

"Marinette."

 _Wow, that was super clear._ Marinette turned around facing her room, expecting to see the small floating bug-like creature. Only to see her room, and the empty atmosphere. A tear rolled down Marinette's check.

"Oh Marinette, don't cry." Tikki's voice rang out again, causing Marinette to stop and scan the room again.

"Am I going crazy?"

"No silly, check your keychain." Marinette rushed to the small ladybug keychain, it was glowing a bright red. "Hiya!" As Tikki's voice rang through, the keychain lit up.

"Tikki?"

"Who else?" he high voice sounding gleeful.

"Tikki!" Marinette squeezed the keychain to her check, it's smooth, cool surface cooling her burning face.

"I missed you too Marinette. Listen, I know you can hear me, and use your powers, but we must talk. This is obviously not all my kwami power. Master Fu was only able to allow a small amount to get to a few of you guys, hence the keychains. He planned this for a precaution but was hoping to have the full power released. All of the kwami's have been taken."

"What? But the box…" Marinette thought back to the clinic, Master Fu always hid the box, but she never knew where. "You're telling me it wasn't there?"

"No, someone took it. I don't know who. None of us do. We only heard the struggle and then some of our powers were released. I can't even tell you were we all are. None of us have been activated yet, and as soon as that does happen, you will be the first to know."

"Tikki, is there any way you could find out where you guys are? I don't have a lot to go on, but Chat and I found a feather. We are both sure that it belonged to the peacock."

"She's not here with us, so it makes sense that who ever has the miraculous is the one behind this."

"But how?" She squeezed the keychain in her hand. "We capture Hawkmoth. We did everything we needed to. How is this still happening?"

"Marinette?" Tikki's voice was a mixture of confusion and concern. "What's going on? Sounds like you're more upset about something else rather than what's happening with peacock."

She released the tension from her body.

"Everything was supposed to end. We were supposed to close one door, and another was supposed to open, possible one were Adrien and I could reveal who we were and maybe… I don't know." She sighed. "It was hard enough loosing you, but now with all of this going down, I fear that I may lose him too."

"Marinette, you're not going to lose Adrien. He's going to be by yourself no matter what. I know this because of how you two behave around one another. He's going to either be a great friend to you, or possibly something more. But let me tell you this, if you cannot move past your fears of losing him, you will. I know this probably isn't the best time, but it looks like part of Plagg has been summoned. You're going to have to face him sooner or later."

"So, it's okay if I let him know who I am?" Marinette asked, peering down at the small ladybug.

"I told you before that your identity was a secret that had to be kept in order to keep everyone safe. That hasn't changed, but you've let so many other people in. You need to trust your judgment and listen to those who you have let in as well." The kwami let out a small yawn. "Sorry, it's harder for me to keep this up with some of my power gone."

Marinette smiled softly. "I understand. Get some rest Tikki. I'll keep what you said in mind."

"Good luck, Marinette, know that I am routing for you." The little ladybug's light faded away, letting Marinette know that her Kwami friend was gone, but still there. Marinette cradled the trinket in her hand, still cool against her skin. Tikki was still there for her. She let a tear fall from her eye and slide down her check. Relief.


End file.
